Steal Words
by MarcusLaurence
Summary: Lie Ren, the calm, kind, and quiet ninja of JNPR is not what he seems. Beneath his taciturn exterior lies a need for witty banter, snarky conversation, and adventure. Because of this, he secretly wishes to get away from the constant kindness his team now and again for a change of pace. How fortunate that a certain thief from Haven may be able to indulge him.
1. Chapter 1

**This is what happens when I get writer's block. A rarepair so rare, that this is the first of its kind! I don't know where this is going or how frequently it'll update, since I'm putting the majority of my time into Fifty Caliber Cat. That said, thank you so much for reading! I hope you enjoy this strange ride.**

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Lie Ren quietly closed the door to JNPR's dorm behind him, breathing a heavy sigh of relief. He hadn't been able to sleep the previous night, and had stayed up doing homework at his desk. Finishing a thirty page essay on the Vytal Peace Treatise had been far from easy, but Ren was nothing if not focused. Thanks to his steadfast work throughout the late hours he finished a week ahead of time, and therefore had plenty of free time in which to do as he pleased. He smiled with his eyes closed. _I am going to enjoy this._

He was very fond of his teammates, and got along well with all of them. While not the most talkative member of the group, he interacted as necessary, keeping everybody happy. His laid-back attitude became the norm around his team; his reputation eventually spread and he became known around the hallways as "Ren the Quiet Ninja." Somebody his team felt they could confide in, apparently, as the other three constantly came to him for advice on various topics. Not that he was more knowledgeable than the others, but when romance was involved, cooler heads tended to prevail.

While it wasn't inaccurate to say his calm attitude was an intrinsic part of his psyche, Ren was also under nearly constant stress due to Nora. He enjoyed feeding her, listening to her ridiculous stories, and otherwise being there for her. However, the rigors of dealing with Nora combined with the stress of dealing with Jaune and Pyrrha constantly asking him for advice in confidence on how to confess their love for each other (and then being too shy or embarrassed to act on it), made him incredibly lethargic in all but the rarest moments. Thus, he relished in his free time, intent on using it to its utmost.

Unknown to all, his laid-back attitude hid a need for complex conversation that his team simply didn't have the ability to provide him. They were undeniably all good people, but Ren had recently found himself craving the need for more down-to-earth conversation. Far from holding it against them, Ren felt more inclined to simply take time to himself, leaving the dorm on the occasional evening to read a novel in some undisclosed location.

This evening, his quiet footsteps brought him to the front courtyard, in which the occasional student milled about. Going further in that direction would lead him to the docks, so he took a left and made his way alongside Beacon's cliffside path in the trees. Vale stretched before him, his high vantage point affording an unparalleled view of the kingdom. A bench nearby beckoned him, and he made himself comfortable with his book.

After about twenty minutes and two chapters, Ren was rudely interrupted. "Ninjas of Love, huh?" said a female voice. "I gotta say, that's a strange title to see _you_ reading." Ren looked up in surprise over the top of his book. He hadn't heard anybody approach, and had specifically chosen this spot because he believed he wouldn't be found. The fact alone that somebody had found him meant either they were searching for him, or enjoyed long walks outside during the evening.

A woman with dark skin and green hair stood in front of him. Her red eyes stared into his, a sarcastic smirk adorned her face. Ren recognized her as one of the transfer students from Haven, who was probably here for the Vytal Festival Tournament.

He lowered the book slowly, uncomfortable with the thought of somebody knowing about his reading material. _Although,_ he figured, _It is far too late to hide it._ "Yes, I. . . uh." _What should I say?_ He raised an eyebrow in question. "How can I help you?"

She laughed loudly, though not obnoxiously. "It's weird for somebody like you to be reading _that_ kind of stuff. I figured you were more the philosophy type. Y'know, like, boring, dense books?" She crossed her arms and tilted her head to the side.

 _Oh, I see. She seems to be basing her assumption off of what little she's seen of me. And since she's familiar with the subject material, I'm at a disadvantage here. . ._ "Well, I can assure you that I only read it for the dialogue." He met her smirk with a small one of his own, happy to see his words take effect. They were evidently completely unexpected; surprise flashed across the girl's face, only to be replaced by an even wider smirk a second later.

"Oh yeah? I didn't peg you for the type. And what exactly about the dialogue do you find so captivating?"

"Emerald, right?" She nodded her assent. He lowered the book into his lap, "What brings you this far out?" His question was a deflection from the topic, yet also of genuine interest to him. "The foreign teams are usually very closely melded to one another and don't often mingle with the rest of Beacon. With the exception of team SSSN, it's rare to see individual students roaming the area."

"Ugh, don't remind me." Without waiting for his approval, she sat next to him on the bench, leaning back comfortably. "I got sick of my teammates and decided to wander."

"The silver haired one in particular, I presume?"

Her grimace answered his question. "Yeah, Mercury. Thinks he's hot shit, goes around hitting on women all the time. Disgusting."

"From what little I've seen, he doesn't seem like the most. . . respectful of individuals." Emerald snorted in response.

"Yeah, that's putting it lightly. I can't believe that guy! He even started hitting on the combat professor right after the fight with Invincible Girl!" It was Ren's turn to cough in surprise.

"He hit on. . . _Professor Goodwitch_?"

She chuckled, reliving the moment with a smile. "Yeah, he got pretty viciously shot down though. But enough about him! I can already feel my blood pressure spiking." Rolled eyes accompanied her statement. She shifted so she was facing him more directly, leaning on the bench with an arm draped over the back. "So, what's it like being on a team with Invincible Girl?"

"You mean Pyrrha," he corrected. "Quite good, I'm lucky to have been placed on a team that I can get along with so well." Emerald's smirk widened with her response.

"Oh yeah? Then why're you all the way out here? Wanted to get away?" Ren couldn't help but sigh with admission.

"It's nice to have some peace and quiet every now and then. Surely, you can understand," he said, raising his book. A mistake, he realized shortly after, as it drew Emerald's attention back to the genre of his reading material.

"You avoided my question earlier. Why Ninjas of Love? Feeling a little. . . frustrated?" She winked. Far from being salacious, it was a wink that suggested she was carefully trying to get him to slip up in his answer. It was a blatant invitation to verbal combat that Ren could become easily immersed in. _Perhaps I won't be returning to my book after all._

"Perhaps," he smiled back. "But probably not for the reasons you may be thinking. While you've caught me reading a book I hope nobody knows I possess, I must once again assure you that my interests in the subject matter are strictly. . . intellectual."

"I didn't realize that shameless smut could be considered 'intellectual.' I don't suppose you'd mind reading me some, then?" Her grin betrayed her, she knew that she had just tripped him up. _Drat. Point for you._

"Not at all," he did his best to recover quickly. If she were willing to see how far he would go in the name of combat by wits, he would be happy to oblige. _I'm going to beat you at your own game._ He thumbed the pages until he found a particularly lascivious passage, and began reading out loud.

" _Renga knelt over Kahar with her legs spread. Pressed against him, she could feel his hardness beneath her, and could barely contain her impulse to rip his clothing off and take him right there on the hard floor."_

He met Emerald's eyes as he finished the sentence. The silence that passed between them was charged. "Keep going," she prompted with a predatory glare. _I won't lose,_ he promised himself. _If I can break her composure, I'll be the winner here._

Ren looked back to the page and continued reading.

" _Renga slowly trailed her tongue down Kahar's chest, tracing his hard abdomen with her organ. She hungrily lapped at the space where his pants met his skin, and then placed her hands on his belt. She unbuckled the leather, pulling it out. Next went the zipper, in an agonizingly slow motion. Kahar's hips surged upward."_

Ren looked up from the book, reestablishing eye contact with Emerald. Little did she know, he was now ad-libbing the rest of the passage.

" _She pulled his pants down roughly and looked down, licking her lips to taste him, his sweat."_ Ren's voice increased in intensity and speed. Emerald leaned forward, as if hungrily anticipating the rest of his words. He too leaned forward, with an incredibly serious expression on his face.

" _And she looked down, seeing, in all its glory-"_ Emerald's eyes were wide; either she was actually curious, or she was merely playing along. Either way, it was apparent that she was having fun. " _-What Renga found in Kahar's pants was. . . The vast emptiness of space."_ Ren deadpanned. " _The abyss, that from a distance, is easily ignored, but as it approaches, becomes more and more inexorable and final in its presence. It cannot be stopped, nor should we try to stop it. We can only wait. . . and watch."_

The following silence lasted a good ten seconds. Both students stared deeply into each other's eyes, as if trying to find deeper meaning in the words. Finally, Emerald broke first, letting out her held breath with a chuckle. "Okay, you got me. Not bad. But-" she looked back at him, "the buildup was a little too strong for that kind of ending. I saw it coming."

He sighed in mock defeat. "Alright, I suppose that's understandable. I don't get many chances to work on my comedy. I'll do my best to perfect it. I'm worried though," he continued, "this is the second book of the series, are you sure you understood what was going on? The plot can become very complex." She rolled her eyes again in response, but smiled.

"Im sure I can understand the _plot_ just fine."

"Good to hear. I'd love to discuss it over tea sometime."

She raised her eyebrows. "Are you implying there'll be another time we meet?" Ren ignored the question, responding to it as if it were an invitation.

"I'll look forward to it," he smiled.

". .Heh." Emerald stood up and brushed the seat of her pants off. Ren resisted the urge to clench his fist in victory. Although she had recovered well, her slight hesitation had been noticed by him, and they both knew it. Ren stood as well, facing her.

"It's been. . . stimulating." He allowed a slight smirk to slide across his face in response to her glare and subsequent eye roll. He ended the conversation on his terms, not keen on letting her win by getting out a last word. "Farewell." He walked away, holding the book loosely in his hand. Emerald didn't say anything as he left, having at least the self respect to not shout a retort at his back. Apparently, she had acknowledged his win as well.

* * *

All throughout his journey back, Ren carefully kept his composure, but only barely. He was incredibly excited at this new prospect for banter, and could barely keep himself from grinning uncharacteristically. _I'm looking forward to our next meeting._

The rest of his team spared him short glances as he returned. Pyrrha waved a gentle hello, and Jaune nodded, smiling. Nora tackled him with a hug. They were working hard on various portions of their essays, collaborating to ease the pain of writing. Ren's presence had apparently been missed; Nora hadn't had a chance to blow off the steam accumulated by rigorous focus.

The others didn't seem to notice his uncharacteristically happy expression; he chalked that to his careful self-moderation of his emotional display. He wasn't especially emotive, especially when compared to the others around him. He also was much better at hiding is true feelings than people like Pyrrha, who was already quite convincing. Therefore, his elation stayed private. It wouldn't do to slip up and create rumors.

When it came time for bed, team JNPR gave their customary "goodnight" to one another before tucking in. Before sleep Jaune played on his phone, while Nora slept like a silent rock. Pyrrha, surprisingly, was a snorer, her light snuffles sounded in the room. It was lucky her snores weren't obnoxious, as Ren would hate to make her feel sorry for something she couldn't control in her sleep.

Ren stayed wide awake for other reasons. Thinking back to his conversation with Emerald, her realized that he might've actually lost the battle in the end. Although he had gotten the final word and made his exit, had it really been on his own terms? He hadn't noticed it at the time due to being focused on the conversation, but Emerald's appearance had eventually made him leave the bench. It was no stretch of the imagination to think that Emerald won by chasing him away without him even realizing it had happened. After all, if she hadn't appeared, he would've read much more than a mere two chapters.

 _Drat._ He curled his fist under the covers, silently admonishing himself. _I'll get you next time, Emerald. Mark my words._


	2. Chapter 2

**I have enjoyed writing this story much more than I thought I would originally. It might not be foolish to expect an update every weekend. . . That said, it's hard to say right now, and this tentative update schedule could very easily change depending on outside events. As always, thank you for reading!**

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It was midnight, and Ren couldn't sleep. He had taken a nap in the sun earlier when his teammates were doing homework, and had therefore gotten an extra two hours of sleep. When he woke up at eleven thirty, he felt wide awake. His stomach ached. Apparently his team was under the impression that he hadn't slept well, so they left him while they grabbed dinner. Ren wondered how Jaune and Pyrrha could've possibly convinced Nora to leave him asleep like that, since she liked to sit next to him during meals.

Although they had brought him back a small tray of food, he left it untouched, figuring Nora would enjoy the meal in the morning as a pre-breakfast breakfast. Besides, he was restless and his hands itched to do something, so he'd might as well cook and kill two birds with one stone.

He snuck out of the dorm as quietly as possible (which was more than sufficient), closing the door behind him with gentle fondness. After all the stress Nora put it through, Ren thought it karmically wise to treat it gently. He padded down the hallway, his bare feet warmed with every step. _Beacon's floor heating really is commendable._

The dorm floor's kitchens were always kept clean (usually due to his insistence on cleaning immediately after every use), so he had no qualms about walking around on the heated tile floor with his bare feet. However, after arriving, he couldn't quite decide what to make for himself. A magazine at the corner of the kitchen island caught his eye. " _Cooking for the Home and Family, Atlas Edition." Well, I suppose I could try to find an idea here._ He made himself comfortable and began thumbing through the pages.

The cooking magazine turned out to be a little bit _too_ good. Ren found himself stuck between choosing four different recipes. He hadn't made any of them before, and they were all equally healthy and nutritious enough to be considered for a late dinner. Not too many calories, yet filled with vitamins. "But what one is the best one?" he muttered to himself. "Should I choose the Hunter's Pie? Or perhaps the Vacuo-Style Wine-Seared Croquette?" He scratched his chin in confusion, turning the page to yet another potential choice. "But what about the Seaweed Salad with Oregano, Thyme, and Red Sage? Or the Haven Biscotti Crumble? Ahhh, I just can't decide!"

He was cut short when the door squeaked. He slowly placed the magazine down. _Who could possibly be coming to my kitchen this late at night?_ A wisp of green hair answered his question a moment later. Emerald pushed her way through the entrance, turning to close the door behind her.

"Can't sleep?" Emerald jumped in surprise when he spoke, frantically glancing around the room until her eyes landed on him. She visibly relaxed, taking in his attire. Her eyes lingered on his black unbound hair which flowed freely over his back and shoulders.

"Well," she shrugged, "I'm more of a night person myself. What're you doing here?"

"Then, it seems I'm the one who couldn't sleep." He brushed a stray strand of hair from his face. "But I could ask you the same thing. Here for a midnight snack? I am."

"I didn't eat dinner, so I came here to make some popcorn." Ren was stunned into silence.

". . . Popcorn? You're going to eat _popcorn_ for dinner? That's not healthy in any way!"

"I said I was hungry, not on a diet." She stuck out her tongue at him.

"No, I refuse. I won't let you eat popcorn." He paused, still appalled. "I _can't_ let you eat popcorn. That's simply not _right_." Emerald rolled her eyes in an exaggerated fashion.

"Yeah, well, I don't suppose you'll make me ramen or anything," she said with marked sarcasm. Ren froze, then rushed to his feet, pulling a small pot from the nearby cupboard.

"If that's a challenge," he began, flipping the pot adroitly in the air, "then I accept. I'll make the best ramen you've ever tasted." Emerald stared at him in blank surprise, as if nobody had ever offered to make her a meal. _Maybe nobody has,_ Ren thought. The victory was short-lived, as Emerald returned with a comment.

"Wow, a man who cooks _and_ enjoys erotic literature! Never thought I'd see the day." She giggled as he visibly cringed. _Damn, I forgot about that!_

"What can I say?" he said, raising an eyebrow. "I'm a man of many skills." He filled the pot with water, placing it on the lit stove. He turned the heat to low, then grabbed a stirring spoon and an oven mitt. His signature apron came next.

"'Please do nothing to the cook,'" Emerald read aloud. "What does that mean?"

"There's a popular phrase that reads 'kiss the cook,' so I thought this apron was more appropriate for my taste. It also was the only one that came in pink." He tied it behind his back deftly, closing his eyes for a brief moment in concentration while he pulled the strings into a neat bow.

"You don't want to be kissed, huh? Why's that? Nobody around here catch your eye? Or are you more into. . . the men?" Ren straightened, blinking in surprise.

"What? Yes-er, no. Maybe? Wait, what?" _Damnit Ren, choose a question and answer it!_ "No, I don't care about any of that. I just like the irony of the statement, that's all there is to it." Emerald burst out laughing when she saw how hard he was trying to answer the questions she had asked.

"Oh okay, suuuuure. Whatever you say, Ren." He sighed once again in response, palming his forehead. For an odd reason, he didn't think it would be last time he did so.

"What kind of ramen do you want?"

"There are different kinds? How many flavor packs do you have? I usually just put two or three in at the same time."

Ren stared at her. "Flavor. . . packs? What?"

"You've never heard of those? They're little packages of flavor. . . stuff. . . that come with each package of ramen. You pour the packet into the noodles when you're ready to eat it. You seriously haven't heard of those?"

The water came to a full boil, Ren pulled a bundle of straight noodles from a cabinet carefully labeled "grains." He showed the noodles to Emerald, who looked at the bundle curiously. "These are high-quality noodles, made with grain imported from outside the Kingdom. They don't come with "flavor packets," so I generally make everything from scratch." He dumped the noodles into the water and lowered the heat before pulling some vegetables from a large bowl and washing them. Noting Emerald's increasingly perplexed look, he explained that he'd be adding the vegetables to the ramen.

Emerald watched in curious silence as he worked his magic in the kitchen. He zipped around with graceful movements, skating across the floor while testing various spices. Nodding at some, frowning at others, he threw many into the pot of simmering noodles, and rejected many more. The vegetables were sliced to perfection, each cut made with quick purpose and efficiency. He chopped them in front of Emerald, satisfied as her eyes widened in amazement at the repeated deft and high-speed movements of the knife.

An offhand remark caught his attention. "I'd love to see you fight sometime." Despite his intrigue he didn't falter in his work, scraping the vegetables into the simmering broth.

"What makes you say that?"

"You move really fast. What kind of weapons do you use?" Ren waited a moment before replying. _I suppose she'll see them eventually in Professor Goodwitch's class. No need to hide anything._

"Dual-automatic pistols with blades attached to the barrel, named 'Stormflower.' Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering."

"What about you?" She smirked back at him, making it clear she wouldn't answer.

"Not telling. But they're not too different from yours." He sighed in exasperation, but otherwise remained silent. The conversation ended when he turned back to the noodles to finish them.

He smiled as he passed her the bowl, his smile turning into a smirk when he offered her chopsticks. He assumed she didn't know how to use them, but knew she would be far too proud to admit that and ask for help. He sat down across from her, abandoning his oven mitts on the edge of the table.

Ren watched her silently fumble with the chopsticks; it was obvious she had absolutely no idea what she was doing. Rather than ask for help though, she kept fumbling with them, her expression growing more and more grim as the noodles continuously slipped through the chopsticks. Ren was doing his best not to laugh, but it was becoming harder as her face scrunched up with a cute look of angry concentration.

"You don't know how to use chopsticks," Ren stated. Emerald threw him a dirty look.

"Shut up." She tried for another minute, before growling and throwing the chopsticks on the table. Snarling, she prepared to use her fingers to scoop the noodles.

"Wait, I don't-" Ren began. Too late. Emerald plunged her fingers into the broth, then pulling her hand out incredibly fast with a yell. "-think that's a good idea," he finished with a sigh, smacking his palm onto his forehead the second time that night.

"Ow fuck! That's hot!" She stuck her already reddening fingers in her mouth. Ren was already standing, moving to grab a bowl from the cupboard.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, just burned myself is all. Damn, that hurts."

He handed the bowl of cool water to her, smiling when she didn't hesitate to submerge her hand, her pride apparently forgotten. She sighed in relief, then raised her eyebrows in surprise when Ren silently pushed a fork across the table. It was a gesture of peace; since Emerald had hurt her hand and then accepted the cold water bowl, the fork was symbolic of the battle being over. "Thanks," she grunted, lowering her eyes. "Your ramen is getting cold."

"Oh! So it is." He began eating to distract them from Emerald's hurt fingers and pride, making sure the noodles didn't splash the table as he ate. Emerald was far less concerned; she slurped them loudly and hungrily, even with the aid of a fork. He was simultaneously surprised and unsurprised when she never made any snarky comments about the taste. He took her silence as a compliment; she was far too busy enjoying the meal to make conversation.

She ate much faster than him, pushing the bowl away with a satisfied noise once she finished. Ren spared a look at her bowl; she had not spared any broth or vegetables, eating as if she had grown up on the streets and taught herself never to take a meal for granted. He considered asking her about that, but figured questions about the past could ruin the amicable mood. For the first time, he felt himself genuinely relax in her presence, content to eat at his own pace while she watched him carefully.

Eventually, she picked up the chopsticks again and carefully positioned them in her hand. When Ren stopped eating to look up at her, she reached across the table and stole a piece of broccoli from his bowl. He could've stopped her (his anti-food theft reflexes had been honed to perfection from eating with Nora), but he was impressed that Emerald had managed to actually use the chopsticks to steal his food. He acknowledged her newly learned skill with a smile and a head nod.

Emerald stood when he finished eating, taking his bowl without asking and washing it in the sink. Ren helped dry the dishes; they finished the chore quickly thanks to the small amount of dishes and cutlery used. Ren bade her goodnight, opening the door to leave, but stopped when Emerald spoke. "Hey. Thanks for the food." It was a short and to-the-point thank you, but it made him happy; he hadn't expected to be thanked at all.  
"Of course," he nodded, smiling at the girl. "I'll see you around, I'm sure. Goodnight." The kitchen door closed behind him, separating the two. He saw her sit back down before the door clicked shut, she would apparently be staying a little longer. _Perhaps she doesn't feel tired yet._ This was very much in opposition to Ren who was by this point dead on his feet, finally ready to sleep.

He snuck back into team JNPR's room, slipping into the welcoming warmth of his bed. His scroll read two in the morning, he would be quite tired when he woke up. He groaned internally at the thought. _At least Nora doesn't like coffee, I don't need to worry about her stealing mine._ Sleep took him quickly, his brain filtering out the sound of Pyrrha's gentle snores.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello all, please enjoy chapter 3! Thanks to everyone who reads, follows, favorites, and reviews; you people keep me going.**

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Ren watched from a distance as Pyrrha ducked and flipped around her opponent. She dodged Neptune's trident artfully, ducking and weaving under his stabs in what almost appeared to be a graceful dance. Each motion flowed into another, each narrow dodge was simultaneously a precise attack with her spear. She wielded Milo with confidence born from years of practice, forgoing stronger defense to focus on attacking. Ren admired her swiftness, she was keeping Neptune on edge with what looked like little trouble.

Part of Pyrrha's defensive strategy was to keep from making any contact with his trident in any way, so as to keep from being shocked by its electrical dust properties. Although she was already quick on her feet, the fight with Neptune was turning out to be a great way for her to showcase her nimbleness in her effort not to make contact. If he watched closely, Ren could see that she had earlier magnetised the trident, further helping her avoid its punishing sweeps and thrusts.

Pyrrha quickly wrapped the fight up. Incorporating a spinning maneuver into her next dodge, she pulled Milo's trigger, rocketing the spear forward mid-spin, catching Neptune completely by surprise and knocking his trident high. She followed up with a shield bash, striking him in the face with the edge. Ren flinched; even with aura, that had to have hurt. Nora cheered from her seat next to him, getting far too wrapped up in the fight.

Pyrrha finished the match with a leg sweep, knocking Neptune down. Before he could get up, Milo's edge met his throat. "Alright, that's enough." Glynda's voice rang out. Pyrrha's fierce expression faded immediately and was replaced with a kind smile and what was perhaps a slight look of regret. She sheathed Milo and Akouo on her back, providing Neptune with a helping hand to get him back on his feet. He happily obliged, hopping up to brush off his jacket and readjust his skewed goggles.

"That was an excellent match, well done!" she congratulated.

"Hey, thanks P-money! That shield to the face came out of nowhere. I dig." He gave a thumbs up and flashed his incredibly handsome smile. He made to fist-bump, but Pyrrha misinterpreted the gesture and ended up high-fiving his closed fist. Neptune took it in stride, walking out of the arena back to his team. Jaune gave Pyrrha a thumbs up, a gesture she gladly returned as she made her way back into the seating section.

Glynda began commenting on some of the fight's more notable points, but Ren had become distracted and tuned her out. A certain green-haired beauty had caught his eye, he looked freely at her while the rest of his team was busy congratulating Pyrrha. She sat with a bored expression, a strange dichotomy in the gleaming sunlight. She slouched in her chair, one leg crossed over the other, her arms likewise crossed. Somehow, she managed to look majestic even considering her bad posture.

Her half-closed eyes suddenly flew open and she stiffened in her seat, straightening. In a split second, she whipped her head to the side, staring deeply into Ren's eyes from across the room. " _Caught!"_ she mouthed, showing teeth with a playful smile. Ren smiled back, inclining his head in defeat.

" _You got me,"_ he mouthed back. He threw in a wink for good measure. She widened her eyes as if impressed by his audacity. She then held up a small brown square. Ren squinted. _Ah, a wallet!_ He nodded to show he understood. Emerald's smile grew; she pointed to Mercury who was sitting in front of her, playing a game on his scroll. Ren was confused for a second, until Emerald mimed stealing it from his pocket. He snickered behind his hand. While normally he would frown upon that kind of behaviour, he wasn't inclined to defend the silver-haired casanova wannabe.

Agonizingly slowly, she spread the leaves of the wallet apart with deft fingers, maintaining eye contact with him the whole time. With her index and middle, she pulled a small wad of cash from the folds, ending the motion with a quick snap of the wrist. Ren watched in fascination as she pocketed the money, closing the wallet. Emerald pointed at her eyes and then Ren's in turn. _Ah, she's telling me to watch closely._ He checked behind him to make sure his team was still talking amongst themselves, then turned back with a nod. " _Ready,"_ he mouthed.

She leaned forward, slowly lifting the edge of Mercury's jacket. Over the next twenty seconds, she inched the wallet closer and closer to his back pocket. Finally, the edge of the wallet was touching the top of the pocket. She held up a finger to Ren, mouthing " _Now we wait._ " She apparently saw her opportunity soon after; Mercury shifted in his seat, and Emerald was suddenly leaning back in hers once again. Ren's eyebrows rose in surprise. _That was incredibly fast, I could barely see her move!_ She looked proudly at him, smiling at his expression. He gave her a silent applause, giving her a smile that he hoped showed that he was genuinely impressed.

His attention was brought back to his team when Jaune involved him in the conversation with a hand on his shoulder. "Did you see that spin move? Pyrrha, you were so awesome!"

"You certainly were," Ren added. "It was an excellent match to showcase your nimble footwork. Well done."

"Thank you, I tried to take a couple hints from you, actually. Did I do well?"

"Certainly! You were quick, but always seemed to be on balance. But more importantly, how did you feel about it?"

She flashed him a warm smile, "It felt wonderful, I feel like I'm finally getting the hang of it." Truth be told, Pyrrha had already mastered quick footwork and Ren knew it. But whether it was modesty or perhaps because she simply wanted to become better, she had asked for his advice and was doing her best to learn from his quick movements. _She's nothing short of amazing,_ he concluded silently, knowing such radiant praise would make her bashful.

Glynda had apparently wrapped up her points about the match. She looked over the rims of her glasses to her scroll. Typing in a few lines, she looked up and scanned the room, choosing the next combat participants. Her eyes settled on him. "Mr. Lie Ren, how do you feel about a match before the class is over?" Any match with Pyrrha would be a tough match to follow, but he didn't feel insecure about it. Whether or not that was due to his self confidence or that he and Pyrrha had completely different fighting styles, he wasn't sure.

Ren stood up. "Of course, professor."

"Do you have anybody in mind for a sparring partner? Perhaps somebody who hasn't sparred in a while." Ren looked around the room before a twisted smile crossed his face. Jaune was taken aback; it was not a look he recognized his teammate was capable of making. Ren looked to Emerald, who realized his intent immediately. The wordless message that passed between them wasn't caught by anybody else, but to the two of them it was as clear as day.

" _I want to fight you."_

Her grin and narrowed eyes were the perfect response. " _Bring it."_

Less than a minute after issuing his challenge, Ren and Emerald stood on opposite sides of the sparring room. "Remember," said Glynda, "the fight is over once one of your auras reaches the red zone. Please keep this in mind during your sparring session, and act accordingly." She made sure the two of them acknowledged her before stepping to the edge of the room.

"Good luck, Renny!" yelled Nora, standing up and shouting through cupped hands. Jaune and Pyrrha watched with interest, giving smiles but otherwise remaining quiet so he could concentrate. Mercury didn't seem interested in his partner's fight, choosing to devote his attention to his scroll rather than watch Emerald.

Ren pulled Stormflower from his sleeves, spinning the pistols in each hand for show. Emerald copied the movement, pulling two green revolvers from behind her back. He couldn't tell, but long underbarrel ridges suggested some sort of unfolding blade could be present. He made a mental note to watch out for that. Emerald took a ready stance. "Hope you're not afraid to hit a girl," she laughed.

Ren let Stormflower give his response, the mounted blades springing to full length with a metallic snap. He readied himself as well, formulating a plan of attack. _Her revolvers seem to be ranged weapons, which means I'll want to get in close as fast as possible._ If he were fighting somebody with a weaker weapon, he would take the hits while running forward to attack. However, Emerald's revolvers looked quite powerful and he didn't want to take the risk of his movement being impaired during his rush. The first attack was often the most important one, and Ren did not want to waste the opportunity through overconfidence.

Ren was moving forward right as the starting sound became audible. He sprinted with blistering speed, sliding on one knee as Emerald fired four shots in rapid succession, faster than he thought possible. Her quick trigger finger did little to account for his low slide, however, she had apparently expected him to dodge either by jumping up or to the sides; her salvo had not accounted for a downward dodge.

Spinning on one knee, he planted his opposite foot in the ground and spun into the air, his bladed pistols swinging in punishing arcs as he struck at her with six rapid strikes. She had gotten her revolvers up in time though and the strikes bounced off harmlessly, pushing her back a few feet. When he landed, Ren barely had time to register the two blades that suddenly extended from her revolvers; he only just managed to bring himself into a defensive stance while Emerald counterattacked.

Ren was faster, but Emerald had turned out to be much more nimble than he anticipated. She swung her kukris in wide arcs, spinning on the balls of her feet to deliver slashes aided by centrifugal force. She danced forward, firing another two shots at him point blank before finishing her attack with a vicious leap. Ren dodged both the bullets in time, then leapt backward into a back handspring to dodge her double slash. Her kukris smashed into the floor, cracking the hard stone where he had stood a split second before.

Ren landed and dropped to his knee, emptying both of Stormflower's magazines at her. A good third of the bullets hit, the rest straying wide as Emerald leapt to the side. She landed in a solid stance, immediately spinning. She threw her arms wide as she turned, the kukri blades coming loose from her revolvers and flying in quick circles around her, connected by chains. The movement caught Ren completely by surprise; he paid for his hesitation by taking a blade fully to the face.

The next swings he was able to dodge more easily, if he saw them coming, the blades weren't actually too much of a threat to one as fast as him. He kept a close eye on Emerald as she retracted the chains, the blades reattaching themselves to her revolvers. She paused to grin at him. Ren had gotten first blood, but Emerald had scored an equally solid hit. He watched her for a moment, reassessing the threat. The combination of revolver and chained kukri only served to make her more dangerous at a distance. If he could get close, her combat prowess would remain largely unchanged.

He closed the gap, launching into a flurry of quick strikes from above and to the side with his pistols. Emerald blocked them easily, returning a couple strikes of her own. Ren suddenly dropped to the floor, placing both pistols on the ground to use as a platform. Emerald guarded low, expecting him to attack her legs. Seeing her take the bait, Ren kicked out, catching her squarely in the chest. The kick knocked her onto her rear; Ren held Stormflower and stood on his hands for a moment more before jumping back to his feet.

His showmanship earned him a couple cheers from the audience and a snarl from Emerald. He could tell she was having fun, and returned her foul expression with a smile and a wink. His smile was quickly wiped off his face when Emerald retaliated with a second rally of shots, emptying her revolvers. He hadn't had time to reload Stormflower, and paid the price by being unable to do anything but dodge. Three of her shots hit, he felt each impact heavily. While not as powerful as Ruby's Crescent Rose, Emerald's shots had about the same strength as Pyrrha's rifle. The shots that connected took a chunk out of his aura, Ren felt the customary coldness that came with the pain of his aura straining.

Ren attacked with a flying kick, but Emerald had plenty of time to prepare. She dodged the strike effortlessly, spinning on her heel to slash at his body with her kukris. Avoiding the attacks, he sheathed Stormflower and resorted to a complicated series of open palm strikes and a quick succession of kicks that kept Emerald on the defensive. She managed to block the majority of his attacks, but her revolvers were slightly too cumbersome to fully counter his quick fighting style; a few of his strikes slipped through her guard, battering her chest and abdomen.

Unrelenting, he kept up his attack until her back was against the wall of the training room. In a desperate bid, she lashed out with both her blades, dropping her guard completely in favor of creating distance. Ren leapt backward as Emerald jumped into the air and kicked off of the wall.

When he rolled to his feet, Emerald landed in front of him, placing her revolver to his chest. The room was silent in anticipation. Ren stood ready, but didn't move. _Don't you know, Emerald? You're out of bullets. I counted them, you've fired all twelve of your shots._

"Checkmate." She fired the revolver, knocking Ren down and onto his back. He stared at the ceiling dumbfounded as Glynda stopped the match. _I. . . What? But, you were out of bullets. Could I have miscounted?_ The possibility was so slim that he didn't even want to consider it. However, he had lost the round, so was there really any other explanation?

"Excellent work Miss Sustrai." Glynda wrote down some notes on her scroll. "Mr. Ren, well-fought. I'd suggest you be more careful when counting the amount of shots fired. You've proven you have a knack for it, but you shouldn't rely solely on that. . . exceptional. . . skill of yours. It may have costed you this match, after all."

Emerald gave him a hand to help him up, which he gladly took. "Understood, professor," he said. Brushing himself off, he took in the grinning girl in front of him. "That was a fun match, thank you." Emerald panted slightly, small beads of sweat gathering on her arms. As opposed to her generally sarcastic nature, she looked genuinely happy with herself.

"Thank you," she responded. "Hope I didn't damage your pride too much back there."

"Damaged pride aside, it was excellent to fight somebody so fast. I may have some competition when it comes to speed now." The two shared a laugh and then split up, Emerald going to the bleachers, and Ren to his team. Students began to file out of the auditorium, the end of his fight signaling the end of class. Before she walked out, Ren noticed that Ruby had struck up a conversation with Emerald, no doubt to fawn over the older girl's weapons.

"Ren, that was amazing!" Nora congratulated him. Jaune and Pyrrha approached as well, offering their congratulations on the flashy match. Pyrrha had changed into one of her signature ugly sweaters; Ren still wasn't sure how she managed to pull them off so well.

Although he felt good about the fight, one thought stayed in the back of his mind for the rest of the day. Had he really miscounted Emerald's bullets, or was there something else going on? Either way, he would take care of it. If the problem was with him, he would practice to refine his hearing. And if there was something fishy going on? He was going to get to the bottom of it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thank you to everyone who reads, reviews, follows, and favorites! This story has been fun to write, and I'm looking forward to the future of it!**

* * *

"Ren, all I'm saying is that missing the sound of a single bullet isn't such a big deal. I mean, that's already a really awesome skill to have, it makes sense that you'd miss one in the middle of a fight," Jaune explained in a hollow attempt to comfort him. His team had noticed his confused mood after the match and had gathered in the dorm to talk it out with him. They were arranged on two of the beds, Pyrrha and Jaune facing him from Nora's bed, with Nora next to him on his bed. "Besides," Jaune continued, "that was a really good fight, you did an awesome job."

"I have to agree with Jaune on this one," Pyrrha spoke up. "You're usually very good at hearing things like that, it's okay to slip up every now and then. She was shooting very fast."

"Yes, but I've never miscounted like that before. And I'm usually fast enough to be able to count bullets from much faster weapons," Ren explained, frowning at the ground. _I can even count the amount of shots fired from Coco's chaingun, so the fast firing argument doesn't make sense._ He shook his head, becoming slightly exasperated. "Do you think I'm losing my touch?"

"No, Ren," Pyrrha chuckled, "It's completely normal to make a mistake every now and then." Jaune agreed, nodding his head vigorously. "But perhaps if it's still bothering you tomorrow, would you like to train for a little while on your hearing?" Even if his team couldn't quite understand his unease, they were ready to help him with his problem. _I have very good teammates._

"Thank you, I might take you up on that." The conversation effectively over, Jaune moved on to talk about the schedule for the rest of the week, looking over his scroll calendar. While it wasn't strictly necessary, it let the four discuss the events that would be happening over the week and fill in any gaps. Nora and Pyrrha chimed in occasionally until they had the classes and their schedules outlined. From there the four of them began their specific preparations for going to sleep. Pyrrha and Nora went down the hall to shower while Jaune and Ren brushed their teeth. The four said their customary goodnights to one another and fell asleep.

The next morning over breakfast, Ren explained his problem to the members of team RWBY. Ruby and Yang were both very impressed at just hearing about his problem, but he had actually been hoping for input from Weiss and Blake. Weiss looked concerned, but wasn't quite sure what to say to help. It was Blake who spoke up with any real meaning. "Well, I'm not sure if you misheard the count, but if you'd like, I could join your team today and practice with Gambol Shroud?" She looked to Jaune as she asked, making sure he was alright with the idea. "We could spar with the goal of you counting my shots, if you like."

Ruby jumped at the idea. "Oh! We could make today a joint RWBY-JNPR training day!" Yang shot down her proposal.

"Sorry Rubes, the three of us still have a bit of homework to do for tomorrow's deadline." Ruby pouted, but still nodded in understanding.

After gathering consent from everybody, it was decided that Blake would meet team JNPR after their final classes had finished for the day. The conversation moved to other various topics, and Ren began to feel slightly better. His unease hadn't subsided completely, but he was glad to have a plan.

* * *

Ren enjoyed the training session with Blake and Pyrrha very highly, considering the exercise both one of the hardest he had done in a while, but also the most fun. Simple in theory, Ren's goal was to get from one end of the training room to the other. However, he also had to dodge bullets shot at him by both Blake and Pyrrha, who stood against the farthest wall. At the end of the run, Ren would have to call out the amount of shots fired in total. Although both were familiar with his excellent hearing, they each were happily surprised each time when he was right. As he caught his breath on one side of the room, the two shooters would check their magazines to verify the answer.

They had started slowly, with only Blake shooting at first. Gambol Shroud shot faster than any other weapon on his team, so he took his time getting used to the faster fire rate as he acrobatically dodged. After a few runs back and forth, Pyrrha added her rounds in without warning, taking more time between shots. As expected from somebody of her skill level, she took her time, placing her shots so Ren would have to think carefully while dodging. Her training methods could be argued by some to be slightly too tough, but Ren welcomed the challenge. If anybody, Pyrrha was the one who would not allow him to become comfortable in training exercises.

The gruelling training wore on until he began sweating, taking longer amounts of time between runs. Blake and Pyrrha had worked up to full speed, firing quickly and even reloading if they had time before he reached the wall. Ren finally met his match when he stumbled, his left leg deciding to give out. Before he hit the ground he was hit with twice, a third bullet whizzing past his face. Pyrrha let out a gasp as he hit the floor, panting. The bullets hadn't done much damage to his aura, but Pyrrha was a concerned teammate. She and Blake ran over to him, helping him up off the ground.

"Are you okay?" Pyrrha asked nervously.

"Yes, thank you. I think all the running exhausted me more than I anticipated." He noticed Blake wipe some of his sweat off her arms. "Sorry I got my sweat on you." She laughed as Nora and Jaune approached.

"Great job Ren!" Jaune clapped him on the shoulder gently. "That was awesome!" Nora was surprisingly silent, but vibrated with happiness, as if ready to start bouncing up and down excitedly.

"Perhaps I'll call it a day for now," Ren said. "Are you all ready to go?" He checked around to make sure his teammates and Blake all agreed. His vision was distracted from them when he saw Emerald enter the training room on the opposite side, far behind them. "Actually, do you guys mind if I stay here behind you and clean up? I think I figured out some things about the way I'm moving that could help me in my next fight." Although surprised, they consented, knowing he wouldn't ask for private time unless it was important. With a final thank you to Blake and Pyrrha and a pat on the head for Nora, he sent his team off to do their homework. Emerald waited until the others were gone to speak up.

"Don't want your team to see you hanging out with a girl, huh?" Ren turned on his heel to address the approaching girl.

"That's not the case, I simply figured it would be easiest to talk to you if we were alone."

"Why's that, you going to confess your love for me-god damn, you're sweaty." She made a disgusted face at the drenched state of his green tunic. "What've you been doing, running back and forth all day?"

"Actually, yes. It's been a very productive day. I've been practicing dodging bullets from two people at the same time," he said with a faint hint of pride on his voice. Emerald was unperturbed.

"Oh?" she responded, "Feeling a bit lackluster after getting hit by my shots?" He opened his mouth that was already forming a retort, but held his tongue. _Does she know I'm uneasy because of the fight, or is she just trying to get under my skin?_ He glanced uncomfortably to the side. She picked up on his silence, raising an eyebrow. What had been framed as a jab to his ego was now a legitimate question.

"Actually," he admitted with a sigh, "it wasn't the fact that your shots hit me that's been bothering me. It's the fact that I miscounted them."

"You can count bullets? Actually, I don't know why that's surprising," she said, shaking her head. "But let me guess, you miscounted my shots and, knowing you, you've spent the last day practicing so that sort of thing doesn't happen again?" He narrowed his eyes.

"How did you know that?"

"Just a hunch. I mean, you're absolutely covered in sweat." She gestured again at his soaked outfit. "You don't seem like the type to overwork yourself unless you feel a strong need to."

"Hmm." Against his better judgement, he found himself wanting to explain his problem to her in full. However, he worried that the game of one-upmanship and ego combat they played wouldn't allow it, or that she'd just shoot down his request to talk with her about it. She interrupted and ended his decision making by pulling her revolvers from behind her, spinning the chambers.

"Well, I'm here to shoot targets. I don't care if you stay or go, but you're welcome to stay." Ren immediately noticed two things about her declaration. First, she had repeated her allowance of him staying, effectively saying it twice. If anything, that was a blatant invitation to stay. Second, her comfort with him being around while she shot at targets meant that she was at least partially willing to acknowledge his problem.

"I'll stay then," he told her. "Mind if I shoot along with you?"

"Be my guest," she said stoically, but he could see her smile slightly as he walked to the bench to pick up Stormflower. Gathering a handful of magazines, he walked over to a table she had set up, occupying half of it and setting up his magazines. Emerald pressed a button on her scroll, prompting flat circular targets to come out of a hidden door in the training room. Two of them lined up side by side on the other end of the room from them. Emerald spun her revolvers in her hands, ready to fire. Instead of beginning with her, Ren decided to watch her first few shots.

Holding the revolvers vertically near her face, she held completely still, eyes closed in a serene manner. She looked almost like a statue, despite her colorful outfit and hair. She inhaled deeply over the course of five seconds, then slowly breathing out. When her breath was gone her eyes flashed open, she aimed her revolvers in less than a second at her target.

She fired an impossibly burst, the sound of each gunshot blending into the other. The tips of the barrells blazed, her shots tearing through the air as they struck the target. She might've been absorbing the recoil with her aura, because the revolvers barely moved in between each shot. She finished, bringing the barrells close to her mouth and blowing away the smoke while flashing an incredibly arrogant smile in his direction.

He returned the smile without looking at the target. "Twelve shots, alternating from one revolver to the other. You started firing with your right, and lowered your aim with each successive shot. You weren't aiming for the center, or if you were, you didn't do a good job of hitting it." His comment surprised her, that was clear on her face. A happy kind of surprise, her smile quickly returned and she gestured at the target. He looked over. As he had suspected, there were two vertical lines side by side, made with six holes each. Each line was equidistant from the center.

"As somebody who appreciates finesse, that is quite impressive." He allowed his vision to return to her. His smirk now mirrored hers. "But can you do it horizontally?"

Ren and Emerald continued like this for some time, Ren would ask her to make some sort of design or pattern with her shots, and she would create it in the span of a few seconds. At the end of each salvo, Ren called out the amount of shots fired, from which revolver each came, and how her aiming pattern moved throughout the firing sequence. While he normally couldn't be so accurate in a fight, by watching he was able to focus more and come up with much more detailed answers. While she reloaded, they would nod to each other in acknowledgement of their respective skills.

Ren stumped her once when he asked her to make two concentric circles, one inside the other. She crossed her arms while firing but accidentally snagged the revolver that was making the larger circle, causing the shots from both guns to go wide. She snarled in frustration during her reload and repeated the pattern slowly, this time getting it right. She did this two more times, faster each, until she was back to firing at normal speed. When she did it the third time, Ren whistled in appreciation. While Emerald was cocky and arguably arrogant, it was undebatable that she knew what she was doing, her skill probably having been honed from a much younger age.

After another round of target shooting, she turned to him. "This has been great and all, but I should really start practicing." Ren looked at her, puzzled.

"Isn't that what we've been doing?" His question made her think, the way she bit her lip in concentration prompted Ren to study her features appreciatively. _If it weren't for the perpetual frown and sarcasm she displays, she could actually be quite pretty,_ he decided. _But wait, maybe that is why she's pretty?_ His thoughts were cut short by her answer.

"Yeah, I suppose so. Guess I've done enough for today, then." She turned to leave, either assuming the janitors would clean up the training room, or simply not caring if she left a mess. "You coming?" Ren hurried to catch up, walking through the door she held open for him. They walked in silence for a few moments before she turned to him. "You know, you mentioned miscounting my shots the other day." With only one sentence, she had his full attention. "Well, you didn't. By all means, you should've been right about the amount of shots I fired."

Ren looked at her in utter confusion. _What? I did count correctly after all?_ He took his time thinking his words through as he said them. "But. . . the fact that you're certain I didn't miscount means. . . it was something you did." He ran a hand through his hair. "But what _did_ you do?"

She laughed, turning her back to him and looking at him over her shoulder. "Well, it wouldn't be any fun if I just _told_ you! See ya, Ren." She walked away with a deliberate sway in her hips, leaving him stunned in the middle of the hallway.


	5. Chapter 5

**I've been writing so much more for this story than I originally thought I would, I'm glad everyone seems to like it so much! Thanks again to everybody for reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting! Couldn't (and wouldn't) do it without ya!**

* * *

Ren knocked on the hardwood door, rapping hard enough to echo throughout the hallway. After a short delay, he found himself staring at a grey jacket, his vision having been lower because he had expected the shorter stature of Emerald. As it were, Mercury opened the door, staring at him with a confused expression. "Hello?"

Ren sighed internally, seeing Mercury was not one of the things he would list as enjoyable. "Goodmorning," he said stiffly. "I'm looking for Emerald."

"Oh yeah, you're that one guy," the silver-haired boy mused, a hand on his chin thoughtfully. "You two bangin'?" Ren sighed outwardly this time. Rather than give a clear yes or no answer, he figured it'd be best just to avoid the question.

"I wanted to give her something," he explained.

"Heheh, yeah, I bet you did." Mercury's raised eyebrows were only making the act of punching him in the face seem more appealing. "Well, sorry bud, but she's not here. Left aboooouuut an hour ago."

"I see. I'll look elsewhere then," Ren said, turning. He couldn't be happier to be out of Mercury's presence, and decided to leave immediately rather than stick around and get help from him. And if he knew Emerald, she wouldn't have told him where she was going anyway.

"Is she a screamer?" Mercury yelled after him, leaning out of the doorway. "I always wanted to know, tell me if you find out!"

Ren resisted the urge to turn around and fire off an insult. _I can see why she hates him so much._

* * *

"Gah, I finally found you," Ren panted, leaning over and resting his hands on his knees. "It took me awhile to find your room, and when I knocked, you weren't there." Emerald eyed his hunched over form with a more than a small amount of amusement.

"Oh? How long have you been looking for me?" Her eyes narrowed in suspicion. "And why?" Ren wordlessly held up a poster that he had previously ripped from one of the school walls, hoping it wouldn't be missed. Emerald read it slowly. "'Seventeenth Annual Valeian Shooting Competition: Come test your skills at the target range. . .' Ren, what is this?"

"This," he said, standing proudly, "is a challenge. I'm challenging you to a shooting competition." A rush of satisfaction lit his face as he realized he had judged correctly; Emerald looked over the poster with renewed interest, her lips forming an ever-growing smirk.

"Alright, you've got my attention," she said, crossing her arms. "But, say I accept, what's in it for me?" Her inquisitive look told him that she was more interested in the answer he would come up with, rather than actually winning something.

"What, is the chance to beat me not appealing enough already?"

"Ehh, I can already do that," she joked, looking to the air in thought. "Let's make this a bit. . . tastier."

Luckily, Ren had taken time to prepare for the possibility that she would want to raise the stakes. "In that case, let me propose a wager." He pointed at himself with his index finger, "If I win, you have to tell me how you fooled my ears during our match. Not only that, but you have to make sure that you've shown me well enough so that I don't make the same mistake again." Emerald's face lit up in excitement.

"Ooh, high stakes! I like it," she said, licking her lips. "And what if I win?"

"I'll display some of my inner gentleman and let you decide what you want." She snorted at the arrogance he had deliberately inserted into his tone.

"And whatever I want, you'll do?"

"I'm confident in my abilities."

"Last time you bet against me, your confidence costed you the match. You sure you wanna take the risk?" She leaned forward in anticipation of his answer; Ren suddenly found himself fighting to keep his eyes from wandering over her figure.

"I stand by what I said. I'm far less inclined to underestimate you now, so I hope you understand the seriousness I am placing in this situation."

"Hmm," she said, standing straight again. "I suppose when you put it that way, I can't refuse. However, I can't think of what I want for if- _when_ I win. Is it okay if I come up with something later?"

"Of course. You have my word that I'll agree to it." she clapped her hands together.

"Alright! When is this competition?"

"It's this weekend, Saturday. Will that work?"

"I don't see why not. It'll also give me a good excuse to get away from Mercury for a while. That guy, I swear, if I see him hitting on one more poor girl I'm going to rip off his legs and make him chew on his own feet. . ."

"Please don't, that would be an exceedingly bloody and painful experience, I'm sure." Emerald looked at him with a raised eyebrow, as if surprised by his comment. She must've taken a second to imagine the situation, suddenly exclaiming.

"Oh! I suppose it would." She covered her mouth, laughing weakly. "Yeah, that _would_ be pretty bloody. . ." Ren merely raised an eyebrow. He didn't consider himself a jokester by any means, but he was pretty sure Emerald hadn't been making one. He dismissed his confusion with a shake of his head.

"So. . ."

"So, I'll meet you at the airships on Saturday. What time?"

"Seven."

Emerald groaned, her shoulders sagging. "Ughh, that's so early. But fine, I suppose beating you at your own game is worth it." She walked away, hair bouncing in sync with her steps. "I'll see ya then."

* * *

Saturday approached quickly, the final few days of the week blurring together in a haze of sparring matches, meals with his teammates, homework, and solitary shooting practice. It took him a while to get the hang of target practice again; he never relied on his shots to finish a match, they were much more effective as a distraction. After clicking his pistols to semi-automatic mode, he noticed a drastic dip in his ability. He stayed up late getting the feel for it again, slowly working the rust off. By the time he went to sleep late Friday night, he felt a renewed confidence in his marksmanship.

Truth be told, he had issued the challenge to Emerald without having practiced first, hoping he could practice enough to make up for the gap in their skills. Although he had practiced for multiple hours throughout the week, he knew that against Emerald, he would be pressed to win. He comforted himself with the fact that even if he lost, Emerald would no doubt come up with something entertaining for him to do. He only hoped it wouldn't involve any kind of embarrassing situations. . .

The distinctive clicking of her short heels drew his attention. "Morning," she yawned, not bothering to put a hand over her mouth. "Is this the ship?"

"After you," he said, gesturing her toward a large transport that would bring them from the clifftops to Vale far below.

"I hope you're ready to lose. I put in a lot of effort getting up this early, and I'm going to get payback by winning."

"I wouldn't be so sure. I've been practicing, after all." Of course, Emerald didn't take him seriously, instead finding another opportunity to belittle him.

"Aww, have you been worried? Well don't get scared, I won't make you do anything too harsh once I win."

The airship flight passed with the two of them looking from the windows with an appreciative eye. While the view from Beacon's clifftops was great, it didn't compare to the height the airship reached before eventually descending into the city. At the apex of the flight, they could just barely make out the faint outlines of Patch on the horizon.

From the airfield, the two walked to the shooting range at which the contest would be held. They stopped by a small roadside eatery on the way, picking up the breakfast Emerald had forgotten. While it cut her complaining short, Ren hadn't been bothered in the first place; he found her sour moods entertaining.

She ate sloppily, boasting of growing up in a family that didn't bother teaching children manners. Or perhaps she hadn't grown up with a family. The fast way she ate, her skills in pickpocketing, and her lack of manners. . . The more he thought about it, the more that made sense to him. _Where did you come from, Emerald, and how did you get into a combat school?_ He refrained from asking; that kind of breach in etiquette would undoubtedly be met with disapproval.

"You're staring at me." She had looked at him while he was deep in thought, catching his eyes. He hadn't noticed the motion and hastily tried to cover it up.

"Sorry, you've got something on your face."

"Oh, I do? Where?" She wiped at her face a couple times, checking her arm to see if anything had been wiped off. Ren pointed to his cheek, but she mirrored the action and once again wiped at the wrong side of her face. Laughing softly, Ren reached out and dabbed a small bit of yogurt off her cheek with his thumb.

She flinched at his touch but didn't move away. "Thanks," she grumbled, slightly embarrassed. It struck him as strange, why would Emerald, somebody who ate so sloppily, be suddenly awkward when he wiped yogurt off her face? It seemed like an innocuous act to him, but perhaps she didn't like to be touched?

The rest of the walk passed in silence, both of them keeping their eyes open for the shooting range. They were able to locate it by the large crowd that had gathered in the area. While most were simply bystanders, there to place bets and be entertained, some huntsmen and huntresses in colorful clothing could be seen standing around talking to one another. Ren and Emerald made their way to a registration booth, signing up for the portion of the competition that would feature handguns.

The competition was shortly under way, Ren and Emerald stood in lanes right next to each other thanks to the time frame in which they had registered. The announcer droned on about the history of dust weaponry in Remnant for a while, prompting the two to share a look. Emerald rolled her eyes and mimed putting one of her revolvers to her head. Ren laughed in response, refocusing when the announcer wrapped up and began explaining the rules.

"Alright. In front of each of you is a circular target. These targets each have five rings around the bullseye. The center is ten points, then the next ones out are worth nine, seven, five, three, and one point, in that order. If you miss the target completely, you get zero points! You may take five shots. Don't waste them. Shoot when you are ready, on my mark!"

Ren could hear the clicking sounds of safeties being released, magazines loaded, rounds chambering. Some huntsmen placed earplugs in, others preferring to hear their shots. Ren shared a look of excitement with Emerald. "May the best one win."

"Good luck!" Her red eyes flashed with readiness, making it clear that she was not one to suffer from performance anxiety. Well, neither was he. Silence grew heavy in the air as each contestant carefully lined up their targets. Ren deployed the blade of Stormflower, more familiar with the balance when it was in combat mode. In a ready stance, they waited for the word.

"Fire!"

Dozens of gunshots immediately fired, Ren and Emerald's included. His first shot had been perfect, striking the target right in the center. _Ten points for me._ To his surprise, Emerald only fired once as well, apparently taking full advantage of having time to aim. It would be impractical in combat, but it meant that the two of them would be firing at about the same rate. They checked each other's targets, sharing a competitive laugh when they realized they were both tied.

Ren aimed at the target, resolving not to look in Emerald's direction again, lest he get distracted. Steadying one hand with the other, he pulled the trigger. His shot whizzed through the air, striking the target once again in the center.

Smiling, he fired another shot, his grin turning into a glare of dissatisfaction when he saw it strike the ring worth nine points through the iron sights. Emerald fired her third shot as well, the revolver echoing loudly. Aside from the occasional gunshot, the firing range was dead quiet, both the contestants and the spectators silent in anticipation.

Ren fired his fourth shot, lowering Stormflower completely to mentally assess his score. The shot had hit the center for the third time, giving him a total score of thirty-nine points, out of forty possible. He twirled the pistol in his hand confidently; he didn't want anything less than perfection, but he had done well so far. Barely resisting the urge to turn and watch Emerald, he readied his stance again, aiming with utmost care. He slowly let all the air out from his lungs, hyperaware of his heartbeat. He would pull the trigger in between his next two heartbeats to prevent any possible deviance in accuracy.

A split second before he fired, Emerald did. Although usually well-composed, the added pressure of competition and the startlingly loud noise of her shot caused him to squeeze the trigger a split second too early. Right during the next beat of his heart. He gasped as the shot flew left. _Oh no!_

He stood, dumbstruck, staring at the target incredulously with wide eyes. "Forty. . . six?" A single heartbeat had knocked his shot clear to the seven ring. While still a very respectable score, especially with a pistol from distance, Ren simply stared in horror. Before now, he had never cursed his heart and nerves for failing him, but, much like his hearing, they had let him down when it counted. Although he knew it was just a fluke, he couldn't shake the incredible sense of disappointment.

Emerald fired her final shot, immediately fistpumping. Turning, she crossed her arms and leaned against the railing that separated her and Ren's lanes, smiling up at him. "Forty-seven. You?"

"I. . . lost." He ran his hand through his hair, pulling out the ponytail. Shaking it, his long black hair fell down, framing his face. "Forty-six. It seems. . . you beat me." Her eyebrows rose in surprise. "Nicely done," he concluded with a grin, laughing lightly at his loss. "I concede," he said, bowing low to her.

"Well, you did pretty well yourself!" she said with surprising gentleness. "Oh! I suppose this means I get to make you do something. . ."

"Please choose wisely," he replied, putting Stormflower away. "And while you're puzzling over that, would you like to get some lunch? It's about that time." He just barely kept himself from laughing at the excitement she displayed in her eyes as he said that.

"Lead the way, loser."

"Gladly," he replied with a grin.


	6. Chapter 6

**Wow, we've already passed 50 followers! That happened so fast, I can't thank you enough. Thanks to all who follow, favorite, read, and review!**

 **Thanks to school finals approaching and writer's block killing me this week, I doubt I'll update next week, sorry in advance. But, the extra time will be well-spent creating the future chapters, so I appreciate your patience!**

* * *

"Where are you taking us?" Emerald asked with an inquisitive look, obviously noticing Ren's careful scanning of the nearby buildings.

"A little place just down the road."

". . . You don't know where we're going, do you?"

Ren sighed. "No," he admitted, "But I figured we could just pop into the first place we find that appeals to us. I hadn't decided on anything concrete yet and-ah, here we go." He stopped walking a raised his hand, indicating a restaurant with his index and middle fingers. The building was made of grey slate bricks and large glass windows, and offered a lovely view of the ocean.

" _Restaurant Babylon_ ," Emerald read slowly from the old wooden sign, while Ren took a moment to cast an appreciative eye at the vines that grew upon the multiple trellises. Earning an approving nod from Emerald, Ren led them into the building, holding the door for her.

A young blonde waiter ushered them to a booth that overlooked the beach, the overhead sun casting its light upon the waves, making them glimmer like thousands of diamonds. "Here are your menus," the waiter said, cheerfully handing over the embossed cards. "And please enjoy your date!" Emerald scoffed at his back when he turned to leave but otherwise didn't make an attempt to correct him.

"So, what're you getting?" she asked, pouring over her menu slowly, as if carefully taking in every choice before reaching a decision.

"I think I'll choose something light. I'm not entirely in the mood for a heavy lunch, so perhaps a small bowl of soup and maybe a sandwich." When the waiter returned, Emerald ordered a stack of pancakes with honey glaze, while Ren asked for the special soup. He wasn't sure what it would be, but counted on the kitchen staff to make it appetizing regardless. Ren wasn't a picky eater. The food arrived, looking every bit as promising as it had in the small menu pictures. The waiter thanked them and left them to their privacy.

Halfway through her first pancake, Emerald broke the silence. "I know you lost the bet, but I think I'll tell you how I managed to trick you anyway." Ren's eyes widened, he subsequently choked on his soup, burning his tongue with the hot liquid. Trying to recover some of his composure, he leaned back and steepled his fingers, ignoring the pain in his throat.

"That's very kind of you, but why would you do that? Don't you like having an edge in combat?" Emerald had struck him as somebody who would take any advantage she could get, not out of malice, but due to an upbringing where that kind of selfishness was required to survive. Of course, this was just a hunch, and he was far from comfortable enough to pry in the interest of receiving answers.

"I do, but I don't think it's an advantage I have anymore. It was only thanks to your bullet counting ability that you noticed anything wrong in the first place, so if or when we fight again, you'll be watching me much more closely. I won't be able to fool somebody like you a second time." While it wasn't an overt complement, her appraisal of his skills pleased him. "So, I suppose it won't hurt to tell you that I had an extra bullet in my palm the whole time. Or, I suppose it makes more sense to say that I grabbed one when you weren't looking."

The revelation shouldn't have surprised him, but Ren found the statement to be quite strange. "How did you manage to aim accurately with a bullet in your hand? And what do you mean by 'when I wasn't looking?' I had my eyes on you the whole fight." She met his puzzling eyes with a smirk of superiority.

"Well sure, shooting was a little harder, but you were close enough that it didn't matter all that much. And as for when, probably when you were dodging my shots, but I can't quite remember."

Now it was Ren's turn to catch her off guard. "If you really do have that kind of skill in sleight of hand, than I imagine you're an exceptionally talented thief." He didn't know it was possible, but Emerald actually slurped her pancake in a moment of panic, choking on the glazed disc. She began hitting her chest as she swallowed, then made a desperate grab for her glass of milk, which she downed in a couple gratuitous gulps.

She regained her breath and met him over the table with narrowed eyes. " _How_ did you know that," she growled. His response was a mere smile, and a re-steepling of his fingers with the obvious intent to patronize.

"I didn't, but one could assume," he mused. "After all, you not only stole a wallet from your reclining partner that on the day we fought, but you also bested me in combat. Which, at the risk of sounding vain, I can assure you is very hard to do without simply overwhelming skills." Her eyes shifted left and right, but it was far too late to come up with a viable excuse. She seemed to recognize that as well and grabbed her fork, stabbing it a tad bit viciously into her remaining two pancakes, spearing both of them at once.

"Well, you aren't wrong," she admitted with a hint of anger, twisting her fork in the pancakes as if consciously imitating the movements of a dagger in flesh. She extracted the mush she had created with the motion, chewing it thoughtfully. "Does that bother you?" she asked, her question more a sarcastic statement than a sincere inquiry.

"It should, but it doesn't. People have always done what they've needed to to survive, and I suspect you're no different." He looked through the window wistfully,brows knitting together, intentionally breaking eye contact to allow her some privacy.

"I. . . grew up on the streets," Emerald admitted quietly. Ren didn't look over for fear of making her uncomfortable, but from the corner of his eye he could make out a sad look on her face. "People that judge the rats of the city don't understand what kind of life we've been forced to live. They sit in their fancy chairs, judging the world as if they're better because they got lucky enough to succeed." She paused for a breath. "They. . .

"They'd be surprised to find that their points of view are incredibly limited by privilege," he finished for her. She looked at him in surprise, obviously wondering why he would have so quickly known what she was thinking of saying. She opened her mouth, about to ask a question. _What is your story?_ Whatever words she would've said, they died on her lips when he stood. "A story for another time, perhaps," he deflected, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket. "Shall we go?"

She respected his change of topic, evidently agreeing that it was time to wrap up and divert the course of the emotion-laden conversation into lighter territory. "There's no need for that," she said, pointing to his wallet. "My dear teammate Mercury said he would pay for this meal." She pulled a stack of bills from her own wallet, dropping them on the table casually.

Ren shared in her sly grin. "You kept the money you took from him?"

"Of course!" she responded matter-of-factly. "He's an asshole." The simple explanation was all that was needed to ease Ren's mind.

"I'll at least leave a small tip."

"Aww, you're no fun," she teased. "Where's your sense of rebellion? I had high hopes for you!"

"Forgive me then, for dashing them as quickly as possible," he joked. "But mark my words, next time we spar, I can guarantee the results will be quite. . . different."

"I'm looking forward to it."

The two left _Restaurant Babylon,_ heading toward the nearest airship that would return them to Beacon. The flight was air-conditioned to compensate for Vale's warm midday weather. Ren and Emerald spent the duration looking out of the window, watching in wonder as the buildings of Vale faded into miniscule shapes far below. No matter how many times Ren took the flight, the view always took his breath away.

The two prepared to say their farewells once they arrived at a split in the sidewalk. One side would take Emerald back to the international student housing, and the other would bring Ren back to his team. He didn't feel strongly about returning; he had greatly enjoyed his day out with the thief and didn't want to leave her presence. Thankfully, he was spared the awkward moment of standing around idly before parting by a snide remark from the girl.

"You know, just because I told you how I tricked you doesn't mean you're getting out of your side of the deal."

"Ah yes, I had forgotten," he replied. "What is it you want, Emerald? Have you decided?"

She smiled at him, her expression an equal mixture of sarcasm and genuine happiness. "Oh yes, I've decided," she answered, raising her eyebrows quickly. "I've decided that I want you to surprise me."

Ren sighed in defeat. "So, basically you've decided to not decide."

"No," she corrected, "this is very different. I'm making you come up with something because anything you come up with will be much more entertaining than anything I think of." She placed her hands on her hips to emphasize her point.

He would've liked to believe she was overestimating his ability to entertain, but was fairly certain that she would, in fact, take a great deal of interest in whatever he could think of. The pressure was on, and Ren found himself excited at the prospect of a challenge. "Then look forward to it," he simply replied. "I won't let you down."

"I know you won't," she said with a laugh.

"Thank you for today, I enjoyed it."

"You put up some tough competition," she acknowledged. "All right," she added with a wave. "I'll see ya later!"

He stood still for a couple seconds, watching her ever-diminishing form with a slight expression of wistfulness. Gone for less than twenty seconds and already his world felt a little too quiet. He walked back to team JNPR's dorm, missing the soft _clack_ her heels had made when she walked next to him. He shook his head before entering the dorm. _But I had fun today. There's no need to be unhappy when I have my own mind for company._ Although, he figured that with the antics of the rest of his team, especially Nora, his world would be populated with sound quite soon. This turned out to be true, but much sooner than he had anticipated.

When he opened the door, the first thing he saw was the rest of his team huddled around the TV. The second thing he saw was Nora's face, which vastly encompassed his vision.

"REN! I can't believe it, that is sooooo amazing!" She vibrated in place with such force that Ren worried she had been given coffee. He looked to Jaune and Pyrrha to get answers, but was greeted with equally excited gazes. "You never told me you were in a shooting competition! You were on TV and everything!" _Ah, so that's what this is about._

Ren gently moved Nora to the side, she stayed rigid on her toes, bouncing happily. "It wasn't anything special."

"Nothing special?" Jaune said incredulously, speaking at the same time as Pyrrha.

"I disagree," she began, sharing a quick look with Jaune when they disagreed at the same time. "You came in third place, out of the top fifty marksmen! That is absolutely impressive!" This comment startled him, he had been too busy competing with Emerald to notice his overall score. She pointed to the TV, which displayed a list. Ren's name appeared right below Emerald's, displayed third from the top. "This competition is huge in Vale, I'm surprised you didn't know it would be televised," Pyrrha explained.

Jaune chimed in, clapping him on the shoulder. "And you brought that green-haired girl with you too! Was it a date?" Nora took a huge intake of breath, pupils dilating, her fists bunching together in nearly psychotic amounts of excitement.

"Renny has a girlfriend?!" she shouted, causing him to wince. Her hands gripped his upper arms in anticipation for his answer.

"No, Nora, calm down," he chastised, managing to pry her fingers from his arms with great difficulty. "We're not an item." Jaune must've sensed a slight hesitation in his tone, because he pressed on.

"But was it a date?" he asked. Ren looked to Pyrrha for help, but she seemed quite interested as well. He sighed internally, but overall appreciated his team's antics. Even at their most pushy, he couldn't stay mad at them.

"It was just a friendly shooting competition," he said, closing his eyes as he lay down on his bed with a huff of relief. "Nothing to worry about." Nora was unconvinced. She jumped onto her bed, crouching as if she were a tiger ready to pounce.

"Sounds to me like you're hiding something Ren! It's okay," she whispered loudly, "You can tell us!"

"All that happened was that we participated in the shooting competition, and then we grabbed lunch. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary."

Jaune looked at Pyrrha with doubt. "I dunno Ren, that sounds alot like date material to me. I mean, not that I'd know," he qualified nervously, suddenly unable to keep looking at Pyrrha. "But I'm just saying."

"I. . . don't think it was a date?" Ren began confusedly. Far from being knowledgeable in the field, he had long ago resigned himself to not understanding all the social constructs that went into romantic relationships. Much better to simply act on what felt right at the time, rather than allowing the opinions and customs of others get in the way.

That being said, he wasn't sure whether or not his day with Emerald had been a date. It was true that he had enjoyed their time together, but his intent hadn't been romantic in nature. He had invited her with the intent to enjoy the day in her company, while doing an activity they both found entertaining. _But wait, isn't that exactly what a date is?_

The rest of his team stayed silent as he sorted his thoughts out, although he could hear the faint creaking from Nora's bed as the girl swayed from side to side, still in pouncing position. "I don't know," he admitted. "I've never been one to understand all the social implications and definitions of dating or whatnot."

"Well, are you interested in her?" Pyrrha asked. While normally she wouldn't pry, she was very good at reading the mood and knew he wouldn't be offended. It was also very likely that since he had helped her with some relationship advice in regards to Jaune, she wanted to return the favor.

"I suppose she's interesting?" he said, shrugging in a questioning manner. "In reality, I still don't know all too much about her, though."

"Well," Jaune chimed in, "Isn't that what dates are for? To get to know somebody better?"

Ren paused, unsure of how to respond, thoughts whirring in his head. "I suppose so," he replied, the beginnings of an idea forming in his mind. If he could just think of something good, his idea would certainly entertain Emerald and would also carry the added benefit of being fun for him too. Now, all he had to do was come up with a solid plan.

 _Emerald,_ he thought, _I'm going to take you on a date!_


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you to all that read, review, follow, and favorite! And thank you for your patience with my recently wacky schedule. I've got quite a bit planned out, but finding time to sit down is tough at the moment. That said, this chapter is a little longer, so I hope you all enjoy it!**

 **It's nearly finals week, so consistency in regards to updates will not be good. Expect a strange schedule for both my stories until January 1st.**

* * *

Ren pulled out his scroll and typed in Emerald's number. He had recently asked her for it, using the excuse that he would need to contact her about his surprise soon. She had given him a suspicious look, but eventually relented, taking his scroll and putting her contact information in. He typed his message over the course of a few minutes, maintaining his signature formality.

 _Dear Emerald, I would like to meet up with you this weekend so I can put my surprise into action. Will it be possible for you to keep your Saturday completely free?_

The "typing" icon appeared on screen; Ren waited patiently for Emerald to finish up her message. It appeared with a small _woosh._

 _Yeah, ill make sure im not doing anythig. when on saturday did you wanna meat? Oh, this is ren right?_

He blinked in surprise at her response. Ren had seen bad syntax before thanks to Nora, but this was nearly on another level. Her response reminded him of either somebody who simply didn't care about proper grammar, or somebody who was very new to writing. He typed a response quickly, double checking it to make sure it was completely free of grammatical errors. At least one of them should hold up the standards of modern writing.

 _Yes, this is Ren. And if we could meet on Saturday at roughly ten, that would be splendid. I think you'll find what I have in mind to be quite enjoyable!_

Emerald's "typing" icon appeared once again, displayed for a much longer time than it should have been, considering the shortness of the message that followed.

 _Damn your such a tease! sounds good, ill be there._

Ren snapped his scroll shut, smiling in anticipation. "You definitely will enjoy this, mark my words Emerald," he declared to nobody in particular, curling his fingers into a fist of victory.

" _Ahem."_

Ren jumped and whirled at the sound with wide eyes. Pyrrha was standing in the doorway to the dorm, with Jaune peering over her shoulder with a quizzical look on his face.

"I. . . how long have you two been standing there?"

Pyrrha covered her laugh with her hand while Jaune grinned. "Well, you were pacing around and stuff while muttering, so we kinda watched for a bit," he explained, allowing Pyrrha to drape her arm over his shoulder and use him as balance while she giggled. "Sorry, we should've said something earlier." He scratched his head apologetically while Pyrrha regained her composure.

"It sounds like you have a fun date planned," she finally said. "What are you planning on doing?"

Ren chuckled to himself, letting the embarrassment leave him. "It's a secret, but you'll be able to find out once we're finished," he promised. "It should be fairly easy to see once we're done. By the way, you two are closer recently," he pointed out, waving his hand at Pyrrha who still hung around Jaune's neck. The two of them immediately separated, blushes lighting up their features.

"I was just- ahh," Pyrrha stuttered, while Jaune scratched his head again, this time in embarrassment. Ren smiled at the two, who were now refusing to look anywhere near each other's direction.

"Well, when do you meet?" Jaune asked, attempting to distract them from the current situation.

"This weekend. Please try to keep Nora entertained, will you? You remember what happened last time I wasn't around." Jaune and Pyrrha's faces paled instantly.

"Y-you can count on us," Jaune stuttered.

"Good to hear," Ren replied good-naturedly, hiding his misgivings. Whether or not Jaune and Pyrrha could be counted on was rarely up for debate, but this was Nora. Nora, a wildcard that was slightly less-predictable than, well, anything really. _Good luck,_ he wished them silently.

* * *

"What?" Emerald asked, staring at him dumbfoundedly. Her eyebrows were raised so high in surprise, Ren wondered if they were going to fly off her face.

"This is how I'm surprising you," he explained. "I'm asking you out on a date."

She ran her hands through her hair before beginning to laugh. "Wow. When I asked you to surprise me, this was not what I expected! Damn," she said to herself, "I really made a good decision there!"

"Pardon?"

"Having you decide on a surprise as your punishment was a great idea! I was under the impression that anything you would choose would be better than what I could come up with, and damn was I right!"

"So," he began with hesitation, "is that a yes?"

Emerald sobered. "Well, that depends. I'm not a huge fan of sitting down for romantic dinners and that kind of stuff; in fact, I can't really stand it. What did you have in mind?"

Ren smiled in response. "I won't tell you, but you're sure to like it. In fact, I'm comfortable guaranteeing it."

Emerald gave a single bark of laughter but didn't press further. "Alright! Let's go."

They arrived at their destination shortly after disembarking the transport airship, the lush overgrown scenery prompted a raised eyebrow from Emerald. "Not to be an asshole or anything, but what exactly is there to do in the Agricultural District? I'm not originally from here, but going to a. . . wine growing place doesn't seem like a great way to hang out. We're underage," she added.

"Although you'd normally be correct, this is a special case. If you follow me into this building-" he gestured to a large warehouse "-then you'll see what I have in mind. Also," he said, turning to her, "a 'wine growing place'? You mean vineyard, right?" Emerald stuck her tongue out at him in response to his grin.

"Shut up."

"You can make me," he retorted, holding open the door, "But I won't go down easily."

Emerald turned around to make a rude comment but stopped halfway through, cowed into silence by the interior of the warehouse. It was a huge, open space, with vaulted ceilings and even a few artificial buildings. Rainbow blotches of iridescent paint covered the walls, the splatters becoming more sparse as they went higher. Occasional yells and shouted orders echoed throughout the room, along with the hiss of gunfire.

"You. . ." Emerald began. "You brought me to a paintball stadium?!" She turned on her heel and met his pleased expression with wide eyes. "This is your biggest mistake yet! You're going to regret this so hard!"

"Maybe," he conceded. "But I'll be sure to get a few good hits in." He pointed out her exposed arms, collar, and midriff. "That kind of minimal dress won't be in your favor. When I win, your pride won't be the only thing hurting."

Emerald glared daggers at him, covering herself with her arms. "You monster, you knew this would happen. You knew I would dress light and took advantage of that." Ren raised his arms in surrender.

"Maybe I did. But if you really need a shirt-"

"No, I don't." she said defiantly, standing tall. "Knowing you, you probably brought one, and no. I don't want it. I'll beat you like this."

"That might hurt."

"It's a matter of principle now," she grinned. "I don't need your charity to beat you!"

Registration took just a minute. Although Ren had been prepared to pay for both of them, Emerald stopped him so she could pay for herself. Emerald had had a hard life growing up, that much was apparent. He could see that she was less inclined to accept charity from others, for fear of debt. It wasn't so much that she didn't trust him personally, but he could understand and even relate to her. He was under the same way of thinking, after all. _Self-sufficiency is a matter of principle._

After registration, they gathered in the meeting area, which quickly filled with other people. For the first round, it was decided by vote that the paintball match would be a Team Deathmatch. After a quick glance, Ren and Emerald decided to take opposite teams. "Although," Emerald joked, "I would still probably shoot you even if we were teamed up!"

"Guess I'm lucky to be against you, then," he shot back, pulling a sleeveless white shirt over his black athletic tank top. "Although, I'm probably one of the few who would voluntarily choose to fight you instead of be on your side."

"That's cause you know how to have fun," she winked.

His and Emerald's groups were led away from the meeting area after splitting evenly into two teams of six. Each of Ren's teammates grabbed paintball rifles, Ren opted to take a green one. Green was his color, and since he was wearing a white shirt, he needed a way to represent it. The guide walked them each through the rules, which Ren listened to with half an ear. Basic, "shoot the enemy, if you get shot, you're out" instructions came at his team while he zoned out temporarily, slowly clearing his mind to get into his combat mindset. The team lined up near the entrance gate in preparation, most donning masks. Ren skipped the process, he had his aura to protect his face from grievous injury. _Besides, I want to look Emerald in the eye when I beat her._

His team of six lined up, in ready position. An air horn sounded, and the group rushed into the stadium, immediately splitting up.

The paintball stadium contained three buildings spread in a line across the ovular stadium. The buildings nearest either of the team's sides were each two stories tall, and the regularly disputed building in the center was four stories, filled to the brim with excellent sniping spots. To make up for the advantage of the central sniping spot, the scattered cover became better and more frequent as it got closer to the middle of the stadium, making a stealthy approach more viable. If her were right, Emerald would be doing her best to get to the central tower to take him out. _If that's the case, I'll take the bait and turn the tables!_

Ren took a running start toward the building nearest to him, kicking off the wall to grab the ledge of a window on the second floor. Pulling himself inside, he rolled and placed his back against the wall, rifle ready. After making sure the room was clear, he moved in a crouch toward the window, peeking over the bottom to survey the arena. Fresh paint splattered the ground and walls near the building opposite him, more gunshots following.

He ignored the pained screech of one of his teammates as they were hit square in the face with a neon purple paintball earning an immediate disqualification, instead opting to scan the windows of the central building for any sign of Emerald. While he didn't expect her to be there already, she might've made a mad dash as soon as the match began. When nothing appeared, Ren crouched low again and descended the staircase back to the first floor, crouching by the doorway.

A young boy ran through the opening with a frenzied yell, his rifle held at the ready. The boy's rush prevented him from seeing Ren; her ran right past without even turning his head. Ren nonchalantly pulled the trigger, shooting him in the back twice. He was out of the building before the boy could even turn in amazement, already diving behind cover. _One down, more to go._

He held his position with his back against the cover, listening carefully for the sound of footsteps. A small firefight seemed to have emerged between two or three of the players on the other side of the arena, but save for the impacts of paintballs against wood, the air was silent. Ren took a deep breath in preparation and vaulted from his cover, sprinting toward the edge of the arena, intent on making an approach to the central building from the side. A few paintballs whizzed by his head as he ran, splattering against the walls in bursts of color.

The low cover formed into a makeshift corridor of sorts, the intent to funnel opposing sides into conflict along its length. Evidently the arena architects had anticipated some players attempting to sneak around the edge, and had made it much more difficult than it otherwise would've been. The corridor did its job well.

At the end of the open stretch, a burly man ran around the corner to intercept him with a roar, spreading his legs in a wide stance and firing haphazardly from the hip. His shots spread everywhere in an impressive display of inaccuracy, Ren made only minimal movements in order to dodge some of the shots. As he got closer he weaved from side to side, spinning to avoid the more closely-grouped patterns. At the last possible moment he dropped to his knees, sliding on the ground while raising his rifle and firing. He winced as the shots made an upward arc, splattering the man in a vertical line from crotch to face.

 _That had to have hurt._ He resisted the urge to shout an apology as he sped by. That made for a total of two players eliminated by him. A quick jump to the side, and he found himself in a completely open stretch with a clear view of the central building. Already in the open, his only option was to make a mad dash to the walls and get inside as soon as possible. As he ran, shots rained down on him from the upper floors, barely missing his arms and legs.

A small stack of boards placed a few meters away from the building attempted to lure him to its sparse cover, but he saw it for what it would be. False security. Anybody on the second floor or above would be able to shoot him if he hid behind it. He sprinted for it anyway, drawing the fire of at least two shooters, if his quick judgment of their paintball trajectory was correct. He picked up speed, sprinting full-tilt toward the boards, jumping.

He kicked off the raised cover, sailing into the air, greeted by shocked gasps from inside. The paintballs stopped flying for the split second he hung in the air before crashing through the window of the second floor and landing in a controlled roll, rifle ready. The two players were far too shocked to react adequately, their surprise too fresh for them to offer any resistance. He eliminated the first with two shots to the body, spinning to deliver a third and final shot to the other player. The paint splattered across her facemask, the wet _thwack_ accompanied by a surprised yelp.

Ren stood slowly, exhaling, resisting the urge to run wildly throughout the building in search for Emerald. She would no doubt either be hiding or searching for him with a cool head, ready to take any tactical advantage afforded to her. In a situation such as this, it became less of a match between the shooters than a match between two combat strategists, desperately trying to outflank their opponent before even seeing them. The line between hunter and hunted had become blurred, placing them both on equal footing. Ren fully intended to tip the scales.

He began controlling his breathing as he moved toward the nearest staircase, taking deep breaths to make up for the lack of oxygen from his earlier sprinting. The staircase to the third floor was empty, in fact, not a single sound could be heard throughout the building besides the occasional creak of wood beneath his otherwise silent footsteps. Ren ejected three paintballs from his rifle and held them in his free hand, ready to throw them as a distraction. The staircase to the fourth floor came into view. He swept the room a final time before ascending.

As soon as the fourth floor came into view, Ren heard a soft giggle, the tone identifying it as Emerald's. He stiffened midstep on the stairs. It was an incredibly obvious trap, a lure, she would have to think he was an idiot to fall for that. However, it was confirmation of what they both knew. The final showdown would be taking place here, on the fourth floor. That meant the giggle was more of a taunt than a lure. A mind game.

Ren smiled, before the color drained from his face. _If she giggled right when I got here, then she knows where I am!_ He threw himself backwards down the staircase just in time. A hail of paintballs cut through the air where he had just been, splattering violently against the slanted ceiling of the stairway. Ren kept his rifle aimed at the top of the stairs even as he slammed into the floor, the creaking wood stopping his fall. His aura flared green for a moment, protecting his back from the injury, but he still gasped from the pain. _Taking a ten foot drop with your spine is far from pleasant._

Emerald made no move to pursue him; she was evidently set on keeping their showdown on the fourth floor exclusively. Ren slowly got to his feet while keeping his eyes out for her. He looked down when he felt a wetness in his hand, realizing he had crushed the paintballs he had palmed when he fell. Ejecting three more, his palm was once again filled.

Ren took a step back inn preparation, then kicked off the floor, sprinting up the stairs as fast as he could. As he ran he whipped one of the paintballs blindly across the room to serve as a distraction. He skidded to a halt at the top, immediately jumping sideways over a low wall as a salvo of paintballs flew by his airborne form, landing in a roll which brought him safely behind cover. His left arm stung, he looked down to see fresh paint dripping from his elbow. Although Emerald had actually managed to hit him, she had merely disabled his left arm. _Lucky shot,_ he thought. And then, _good for me, I'm used to shooting with one arm._

Judging by the angle at which the paintball had hit his arm, Emerald was at the far side of the floor, shooting through at least one doorway to hit him. Although, knowing her location was a moot point; she was no doubt on the move now that he had successfully invaded her space.

He shook his uncovered arm to dismiss the sting and readied his rifle. Ren rushed through the nearest doorway into a rectangular room, spinning on his heel to sweep for Emerald. When he didn't see her immediately, he dove to the center to cover his back in case she had hidden on the wall through which he had entered. After affirming her absence, he pressed his back to the wall once more, listening closely for footsteps.

 _There._ It was short, just one step that faded immediately into the silence, but Ren caught it. Knowing she probably couldn't sprint as silently as him, it was safe to assume that Emerald had found cover or was moving slowly to avoid generating sound. If his ears were correct, she was in the next room. "All or nothing," he whispered.

Ren jumped through the nearest window, finding himself in a large open space that somewhat resembled a living room. As soon as his feet touched the ground, he heard a slight whistle and then a _splat_ as a paintball collided with the far wall. Ren dove in the opposite direction, not fooled by her distraction. The collision had sounded _wrong_ , not moving nearly fast enough to be shot from a rifle. Emerald had thrown it in much the same way he had, but hadn't been strong enough to make the connection convince him.

He brought up his gun, ready to pull the trigger, to find. . . nothing. Emerald wasn't there. Ren took a flying dive at the table on instinct, hoping he'd be able to dodge any shots by virtue of his unpredictable motions. If Emerald had thrown a paintball as a distraction and he had aimed to where he assumed she was and she wasn't there, that meant she had thrown it from a different position. Luckily for him, that position would have to have been in the same direction he was diving.

Ren fired blindly form midair, landing chest first on the table in the center of the room. Bracing the rifle on the surface, he fired six more shots in what he hoped was in her general direction, stopping when he heard Emerald's telltale yelp.

"Ah, dammit!" Emerald yelled. "You got me!" She stepped into the room, making a surprised face at him when she realized where he was. Ren stayed sprawled on the table for a moment, attempting to catch his breath.

"It was a lucky shot," he admitted. "You fooled me there, if I hadn't been lucky, you would've won." He dismounted from the table, giving her a once over to see where she had been hit, then smiled at his handiwork. A line of golden splotches crossed her stomach, he had hit her with three shots right above her belly button. A tight grouping.

"I'm impressed. Damn though, that really hurts," she said, absentmindedly rubbing her stomach to ease the pain.

"Do you wish you had the shirt I offered?"

"Hell no, this is way more fun. Raises the stakes," she said with a wink.

Ren found his eyes drawn to her stomach when she dropped her hand. Her rubbing had left a smear of iridescent gold paint across her stomach, the light reflecting off her abdominal muscles. She was silent for a moment, but then spoke, snapping him out of his reverie.

"I know I'm beautiful, but you don't need to stare at me like that!" she said, but made no move to cover herself, instead placing her hands on her hips. Although it could've been a coincidence, Ren was sure that the way she angled her hips to make the light play off her abdominals was all too intentional.

He didn't attempt making an excuse for his staring; they both knew what he had been appreciating. "Heh. Looks like I win round one," was all he said.


	8. Chapter 8

**Happy New Year's! Like I mentioned, my updates would be inconsistent until about this time. I didn't realize they would be nonexistent. . . Sorry about that! I promise my works are not dead, just greatly delayed. Thank you for your patience.**

 **As always, thank you for reading, reviewing, liking, and favoriting, and enjoy this double-length chapter of Steal Words.**

* * *

When they got back to the entrance, they were bombarded with praise. "Wow! You two were amazing out there!" one boy shouted.

"How did you even jump that high?" one of the women Ren had shot asked, making no attempt to hide the impressed and dazzled look on her face. The man from the reception desk elbowed his way through next, clapping both of them on the shoulders.

"Wow, what a show! You two were a blast to watch! Where did you learn those kinds of skills?"

"We're hunters in training, at Beacon Academy," Ren explained.

"The best in the class, actually," Emerald added, ignoring the frustrated look Ren shot her. "We even participate in the occasional marksman competition." Ren rolled his eyes. _She can boast as much as she wants._

"Well then," the man grinned, "I don't suppose you two would like to make things more interesting for the next round?"

"Oh?" Emerald couldn't disguise the interest in her voice. "And how would we do that?"

"Well, I can't speak for everyone here," he said, looking around and the group that was gathered around them, "but I think a team deathmatch with everyone against just the two of you would be pretty fun!" He received a couple vigorous nods of approval from some of the more eager members. "And, it would give everyone a chance at payback," he added. This gained even more approval, until everyone was raring to go. The infectious spirit of friendly competition filled the air.

Ren and Emerald shared a look. "Well, it could be fun," he admitted, shrugging. The small crowd cheered, throwing various taunts their way.

"Don't think we'll go easy just because you're outnumbered!" Of course, Emerald couldn't help but shout back.

"Outnumbered, but not outmatched!" She earned a few laughs with that one, turning with Ren to walk to the opposite side of the stadium. "You think we can win?" Ren looked at her slyly.

"Are you having second thoughts?"

"Not a chance!" she huffed. "Just making conversation. I can handle myself."

" _We_ will win," he corrected. "But to make it more fun, let's make a bet. If one of us gets shot before they other, there should be a punishment."

"The winner will get five shots at the loser, anywhere they want," she said gleefully.

"Anywhere at all?" Emerald nodded in answer, grabbing a new paintball gun from the rack.

"Yep. Why, you scared?"

"Of losing? Not at all," he replied, grabbing a rifle of his own. "I'm just wary of your malicious intent."

"Then don't lose," she winked.

The announcer's voice blared over the loudspeaker. "The game will begin in thirty seconds! Take your places and ready up. The match ends when all members of the opposing team are eliminated!" He switched to a loud whisper. "Everyone, make sure to beat those two, I've got a hundred Lien riding on ya."

Ren laughed, "They're betting against us. Poor choice."

"Beating people at their own game and winning money is even better than stealing it," Emerald said, licking her lips in anticipation. "Let's turn some heads."

"You've already turned this one," he said, crouching in a ready stance. Emerald jolted in surprise.

"Wait, are you flirting with me?" she asked, but the gong sounded and the match began, Ren already running ahead.

Ren heard the excited yells of the group form the opposite side of the arena. From the sounds of it, they were spreading out. Emerald caught up to him as he ran through the doorway of an empty building. "They're splitting up, be careful that they don't catch us in a pincer attack," he barked.

"Do you really think they're smart enough to coordinate something like that?" she asked dryly.

"Maybe not on purpose, but you'd be surprised at how far dumb luck can get you."

"You would know," she said, shooting twice through the doorway on the opposite side of the room. A pained yell followed after the gunshots. Ren jumped; if it weren't for her, the person would've gotten the jump on him. "Let's move."

"Thanks."

The pair ran upstairs, sweeping the room quickly before crouching on either side of a window. Emerald peeked over the ledge. Ren was about to ask whether or not she saw anybody, when she held up a hand. _Two of them._ She crouched back down and looked at him.

" _On three_ ," she mouthed. He gave a nod of understanding. " _One. Two. Three_!"

The two popped up over the windowsill, sighting their targets as fast as they could. A quick succession of two gunshots later, their targets lay on the ground, faces plastered in paint. Ren and Emerald ducked out of sight once more, having been in view for less than two seconds.

"We'd better split up," Ren said, "If they didn't know before, they definitely know that we're in this building now."

"Good idea. I'll sneak out the back and circle around the center building, try to flank them."

"Alright, I'll run in guns blazing for a distraction. Don't get found."

"Don't get hit," she responded, holding out her fist so Ren could fistbump her. She took off down the staircase, her footsteps strangely silent when compared to her speed.

Ren stepped back, then rushed forward, taking a flying leap and tucking his body so he flew through the window. He flipped forward in the air, landing on the dirt and rolling again to dispel the impact. Coming up with his rifle ready, he scanned his immediate surroundings. Nothing. The path to the central building was cluttered with cover and small barricades, making only the top three stories visible. He suspected that the rest of the opposing team were hiding inside, hoping to overwhelm him and Emerald with force of numbers.

Ren grinned at the thought. Not only would it provide a small challenge to them, it would also let him flex his combat muscles a little in a safe environment. After all, he doubted there could be a better stealth team than he and Emerald.

Darting from cover to cover, Ren moved forward toward the building in a relatively straight line, making little effort to remain hidden. He focused more on being unhittable. When he was roughly fifty feet away, the first paintball whizzed by. He ducked it easily, although it would have missed him anyway, and crouched behind a low wooden wall. Three more paintballs thudded into the wood. _That's not going to work,_ he thought to himself. _Why would they waste their time- ah, I see._

A continues salvo of paintballs flew into the boards behind him, occasionally nailing the dirt on either side of his cover. He could escape, of that he was certain, but if they weren't letting him leave, they probably had some sort of plan. _And that plan would involve keeping me pinned down here while a couple others circle around and take me out from behind._ He grinned, he was more than ready to beat them at their own game.

As expected, his first assailant stuck his head out from a stack of pallets moments later. Ren immediately sighted the boy and punished him with a couple streaks of neon purple and red across his facemask and torso. He fell to the ground in surprise, accidentally firing wildly into the air as he fell. "Ahh, he knows we're here, get 'im!"

Three others burst from behind a wooden wall a little to the right of their paint-plastered friend. It took them a moment to locate him, and by the time they had, Ren put a paintball squarely into the chest of one, and two into the legs of the other. The third, more prepared than the other two, dove out of the way, rolling behind a stack of logs. Ren's shots barely missed him.

He heard yelling behind him as the stream of shots against his cover let up, but he ignored it. The person, one of the young women he had hit in the face the previous game, suddenly jumped from her cover and ran diagonally toward a box, before sliding behind it. Ren shot the box a couple times for amusement, hearing a sharp gasp.

The arena went uncomfortably silent for a few moments. Ren abandoned his crouch, walking low to the ground as silently as he could to the next piece of cover. If the opposing team was going to try to circle around him, he'd circle around their circle. _Circles within circles,_ he said to himself, stifling a giggle.

The occasional blast of gunfire from the building provided him with more than ample cover for his footsteps, quiet as they were. After half a minute of careful sneaking, he found his target. The young woman was peeking from behind her box, evidently trying to find him. Her back was turned, she was doing a terrible job of watching behind her.

Ren stood fully, aiming his rifle at her upper back. "Checkmate." The woman jumped into the air in surprise, and, to her credit, tried to aim her rifle at him. He pulled the trigger before she could, however, splattering her across the back and shoulder.

"Oh my god!" she yelled, ripping off her facemask and dropping it to the ground. "What's it take to beat you guys?" she began laughing then; if her smile was anything to go by, she wasn't mad. Ren breathed a sigh of relief. Instead of answering he merely shrugged noncommittally before speeding off in the direction of the center building.

If the lack of sound from the main building was anything to go by, Emerald had probably taken out most of the people inside. Confident as he was in her abilities, he approached cautiously; one could never be too careful. Finally deciding it was safe, he entered, staying low to the ground in a crouch. The sound of footsteps coming from upstairs caught his attention.

Ren navigated through the building by memory, approaching the staircase that would bring him to the second floor. He stopped short just before taking the first step up. _How will she know it's me approaching, and not somebody else?_ While not entirely necessary, he wanted to meet up with her so they could finish up the match together. Not only would they be more effective as a pair, but wasn't the point of dates to spend time with the other person? _But apart from shouting "It's me!" how will she know not to shoot me?_

He began taking the stairs two at a time, keeping his weight near the edges to prevent them from making noise. He was greeted at the top with another empty room. Ren walked into it slowly, keeping his rifle at the ready. The barrel stirred the air, moving dust particles this way and that as he scanned the area.

"Looking for someone?" Ren jumped into the air and turned, just barely managing to hold his fire when he realized it was Emerald who had surprised him. _Of course-_ he mentally chastised himself - _she's the only one here who could actually sneak up on me._

"You seem to have found me first," he breathed, lowering his rifle with a sigh of relief. "You startled me."

"Let me guess," she responded, preemptively rolling her eyes, "next you're going to say 'not many people can scare me,' or something like that?"

He laughed. "Well, living around Nora practically guarantees that I get scared all the time. It's getting snuck up on that doesn't happen often."

"How do you feel, now that I managed to do both at once?"

"My blood is pumping a little bit faster," he admitted. "But would you believe me if I said it was because of the paintball combat?"

"Pffft. Nope." She grinned lopsidedly. "I'm gonna take all the credit for getting your heart going. Now let's get going. There's only four left, probably." Ren nodded, bringing his rifle back so it was braced against his shoulder.

"Let's go hunting."

"Don't make it lame, Ren," she groaned, catching his eye. He blinked at her blankly.

The two ran through the door on the first floor, back into the open arena. Instead of taking their time, they had decided on utilizing a more "run and gun" approach. As it were, they sped across the gravel at a full sprint, holding their rifles with only one of their hands, as if they were glorified pistols.

"Left!" Ren shouted. Emerald fired blindly at her side until her target became visible. At the haphazard shooting, the boy threw himself behind a wooden crate. Ren and Emerald kept running. When the boy poked his head up from behind his cover, she scored two solid shots on his face, a paint splatter where each of his eyes were under the mask. He fell backwards with a groan.

"Good shot! Three left!" Emerald acknowledged him with a thumbs up.

They sped forward, straight through the open door of one of the smaller buildings. Right inside, Ren slid to the ground, allowing his momentum to carry him forward on the seat of his pants. He aimed to the side as he did so, firing as fast as he could in random directions. If there had been any players there, Ren's shots would've removed them neatly from the game.

Emerald followed him in a split second later, jumping over his prone form while firing her rifle in midair. She turned halfway through her jump, firing into a single location with a concentrated grouping of shots. When she landed hard on her side, somebody yelled in frustration, but it wasn't her.

They ignored the heated ranting from the corner of the room in favor of helping each other up. "Better luck next time," Emerald shouted as they ran through the rest of the building and out the other side. _Only two remain._

The final two were together, and it seemed they had been expecting them to run through the building. As soon as they made it outside, Ren and Emerald immediately became the targets of a barrage of paintballs. Ren barely managed to grab Emerald around the arms and throw them to the side so they were hidden behind a low wall. The entrance where they had been standing only a moment before was covered in dripping paint.

"Sorry," he said when he realized he was still holding on to Emerald's arms. She shook her head.

"No, that was quick thinking. Good job. It didn't even hurt."

Ren was taken aback for a moment. _Oh, she thinks I was apologizing about throwing us!_ In actuality, he had been worried that he had held onto her too long. More paintballs whizzing by their heads brought him back to reality. _Focus, Ren!_

"We're pinned down!" Emerald yelled. "We've gotta do something!" Suddenly, the paintballs stopped. Ren slowly raised himself, poking his head up above the wall. A gunshot and narrowly missing paintball had him diving back down again. He landed on something soft.

Emerald spoke, her voice uncertain. "Um. . ."

Ren surveyed his position. Emerald was looking to the side, a slight tint of pink on her cheeks. When dodging the shots, Ren had thrown himself down and accidentally landed on top of her. Their faces were mere inches apart, upper bodies pressed together, and legs tangled.

"Ahh, sorry," he said quickly, pushing himself up.

"Heh, it's alright—Wait! No don't!" she suddenly yelled, grabbing him by the collar and yanking him back to her. Once again, he collided against her with a huff of air.

"What?" he began, but his question was answered by the splatter of a paintball against the top of their low cover. Had he gotten off of her, he would've been immediately shot.

"Stay low!" she hissed. He complied but rolled to the side, so they were facing each other on the ground. "We need to take these clowns out, any ideas?"

"You mean besides one of us sacrificing ourselves?"

"Well obviously!"

Ren frowned. "It would be cheating if we used our semblances." Emerald sighed, but nodded.

"Well, there's no way they can hit us both if we jump out at the same time. How about we just go and take them out? It's a guaranteed win, even though one of us may get shot."

Ren grinned. "A numbers game, I like it. And, if one of us does get shot, we've got that punishment ready!" She shared his grin.

"Glad you remembered that!"

"On zero, you ready?" she nodded.

He held up three of his fingers. When he lowered the first one, he stayed silent. Then he lowered the second, so only one was remaining. "Three!" He lowered his final finger, jumping up with Emerald as he shouted. "Two!"

By offsetting the numbers he and Emerald were using to the ones he shouted, he hoped to gain an advantage of surprise. The plan worked better than he thought possible. As they jumped out, their two adversaries had braced themselves over the top of a wall, so as to improve their accuracy. However, the quick sideways movement that Ren and Emerald boasted was too fast for them to track with their sights.

They fired, but weren't able to connect, and when they wheeled to aim at them, their shots were poorly placed and missed. Ren sprinted all the while, firing with one arm continuously until a few of his shots connected with the first shooter. His run brought him behind a stack of boxes; he slid to safety. A couple more shots sounded, and he peeked his head out, this time ready to dive back into cover should the need arise.

"It's safe!" Emerald shouted from a little ways away. "We got 'em!"

"Good shooting, did you get hit?" he asked, leaving the safety of the boxes and walking into the small clearing.

"Nope," she said, giving him a quick once-over. "Looks like you got away clean too."

"Yes," he said, widening his stance as he faced her. He lowered his rifle until the tip hovered just above the ground, holding it with just his right hand. "But either of us has yet to get shot."

His words caught her by surprise. "You don't mean. . ." she took in his stance and shook her head, walking away until she was roughly thirty feet away from him. "So you want to end this with one of us getting hit, no matter what?"

"It's more fun that way," he stated. "Besides, this is more a simple test of reflexes. Who can shoot first, I wonder?"

"We'll find out! Well then, Ren. Looks like we've got ourselves a Vacuan Standoff," she mused, getting into a widened stance with her rifle similarly lowered. "That was a good movie. You ever see it? Spruce Willis stars in it."

"No, I was always more of a Rob Boss fan. You know, happy trees and all that."

Emerald snorted. "Figures, you don't seem like the type to enjoy TV gunfights."

"They're never as fun as the real thing," he said, winking at her. She raised an eyebrow.

"I can understand that. A TV isn't able to shoot you." Her arm twitched, but Ren didn't take the bait.

He jerked his arm next, a small movement meant to intimidate. She stayed completely still, eyes narrowed. _Damn, she's good._

Ren watched as Emerald slowly pulled a paintball out of her pocket, holding it flat in her hand. Her message was clear. _As soon as it hits the ground, we fire._ She wasted no time in lobbing it skyward.

The paintball spun slightly as it ascended, catching the brilliance of the artificial lights as it reached its apex. Then it plummeted, gathering speed as gravity exerted its will upon the sphere. It dropped, passing directly between them; breaking their eye contact for a millisecond.

Ren moved as soon as he saw the sphere hit the ground, before the sound of the impact even reached his ears. He swung his arm in a wide arc, elbow straight. In the split second before he fired, Emerald grinned.

Instead of swinging her weapon up, she opted to drop down, allowing her to aim by merely bending her elbow. Ren's shot flew through her hair, the paintball refusing to break and recolor her green strands as it brushed against them. Emerald's shot hit him in the face.

Ren reeled backwards, the side of his cheek stinging viciously. He was acutely aware of his heartbeat in the area, and the wetness of the paint as it spattered across his cheek. He regained his footing at the last second, removing the hand he had clutched to his face on instinct. It came away pink. _Thank god for Aura._

Emerald began giggling hysterically, covering her mouth with her hands, her rifle abandoned on the dirt. "Oh my god, I got you! You're face is covered in pink!" Ren lowered his head in defeat while beginning to laugh.

"That you did," he said, raising his paint-stained hand to his face, "and look, it matches the pink in my hair!"

Emerald lazily picked up her rifle, her giggling subsiding. "Good job though, we really kicked ass out there. I bet they won't forget this defeat anytime soon."

"Good job to you as well," he said, offering her a fistbump. She connected her fist with his gently. "Shall we head out?"

They left the arena through the central doorways and were immediately showered in praise by those they had just defeated. Ren did his best to remain humble, but Emerald was positively basking in her newfound fame. When he raised an eyebrow to her later, all she said was: "being humble is overrated."

At last their small crowd subsided and they were able to get to their bags. "Did you bring a spare set of clothes?" Ren asked, pulling off his white overshirt and throwing it into his backpack. He waited for a response for a moment, and when none was forthcoming, turned to look at her.

Emerald was zipping her backpack slowly, staring at him with a zoned-out expression. _What is she looking at?_ He thought to himself. It wasn't as if he was shirtless; he still had his black tank top on. On a whim, he flexed his arm, corded muscles tightening. Emerald quickly looked away and zipped her pack closed with a vigorous motion, her lips twitching as she tried to hide her smile. "Emerald?"

"Hmm?" she intoned, turning to look at him as if it was the first time he had tried to get her attention. He held up the spare shirt he had brought.

"Do you need this shirt?"

"Oh! No, thanks though. I'll go back like this." Ren shrugged.

"Your call. But if you change your mind, you can at least use this shirt to wipe off your stomach. Let me know."

"Got it."

They passed the rest of the time it took them to pack up in a comfortable silence, letting their blood cool after the adrenaline rush. As they walked out into the sun, Emerald turned to him.

"Here, let me get that for you," she said, reaching toward his face. He flinched back on instinct, causing her to stop. He waved away her sudden look of concern.

"Sorry, reflexes. Go ahead."

She began wiping at his cheek with her thumb; it took him a moment to realize that she was trying to wipe the paint off his face. Her strokes were not too gentle to be ineffective; she wasn't worried about irritating the area.

His blood suddenly chilled when her lips parted in a malicious grin, a gleam coming to her eye. Before he could react, she wiped in the opposite direction, gathering paint on the tips of her two fingers. Her hand thrust forward, fingers spearing into his mouth and wiping the pink paint on his tongue.

"Blech!" he sputtered, immediately lifting his shirt to wipe his tongue. "I should've seen that coming," he growled as Emerald laughed hysterically, clutching her heaving sides. He continued wiping his tongue on the white shirt, stenciling it ever more pink with tongue-shaped outlines. "Why would you do that to me!" he exclaimed in mock anger.

Emerald had trouble catching her breath to formulate a response. "I wasn't planning to, I swear!" she said, raising her hands in surrender. "I just thought of it spur the moment!"

He stuck his tongue out at her, mainly to display the pink she had smeared on it. "I'll get you back."

"What, you gonna lick me?"

"Don't test me, or I might."

The air between them crackled with intensity. Emerald's eyes darted from his, to his tongue, and back again. He glared at her with all the intimidation he could muster. It wasn't enough.

"Heh," she said, turning suddenly to walk away. "I'll look forward to seeing you try."

* * *

They arrived back at the cliffs of Beacon as the first reddish hues of sunset colored the horizon. Paintballing had taken longer than either had anticipated, and both were running up an appetite. As they disembarked, Emerald stopped on the pier.

"So, what's the story between you and that crazy hammer girl anyway?"

"You mean Nora?" She nodded. The airship began taking off, the loud noise effectively blocking conversation for a couple seconds.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"Oh no, it's fine," he reassured, sitting down on the edge of the platform, legs dangling. Emerald took his continued silence as an invitation to join him. She sat carefully, sitting cross-legged to avoid dangling parts of herself over the edge.

"I lost my parents at a young age," he began. "I wandered for a while, and when I finally made it to another village I was nearly dead. The local butcher took me in and nursed me back to health, and that's where I stayed, at least for a time." He looked wistfully out over the city, eyes unfocused.

"So you grew up outside the Kingdoms?" he nodded in confirmation.

"Nora was the butcher's daughter, and we kind of grew up together," he concluded simply.

"Oh, I get it. So it's like the childhood friend kind of romance?" she asked. Her voice was slightly flatter, as if she had suddenly become tired. Ren perked up, his wistful attitude forgotten. Listening to her dejected tone made him uncomfortable, as if he had said something unbelievably cruel.

"She's basically like a sister to me," he clarified.

"Oh! I thought you two were a couple or something."

Ren snorted. "If you had a sister, would you date her?" She looked at him with horror, as if he had just asked her to jump in a pool filled with writhing maggots while naked. He regretted not preemptively pulling out his scroll so he could snap a photo.

"Ew! No, of course not! That'd be gross!" He merely shrugged.

"Well, there you have it. That's all the explanation you need."

"I'll say!" She shuddered.

"So. . . what's going on between you and Mercury?" She froze.

"Excuse me?"

"Well, it's not uncommon for romantic bonds to form among members of the same team. . ." he trailed off, unable to keep the grin from his face. His play to get a reaction had worked much better than expected.

She turned to him, eyes narrowed. "You just earned yourself another beat down in the sparring ring!"

"I wouldn't mind that."

"You'd be one of the first not to. Creep."

Truth be told, he was enjoying his time with Emerald a great deal. As long as he got to spend time with her, he wasn't too picky about which way it was spent. _Besides, combat is very much a confluence of our interests. There's less talking involved._ Ren didn't consider himself too good at lengthy conversations, and felt that Emerald wasn't the type to enjoy introspection. Those with darker pasts rarely did.

He was happy that they had a safe common interest that they could use as an excuse to spend time together.

Emerald looked out at the setting sun again with a sigh. "You know, as far as first dates go, this wasn't too bad. Thanks."

Ren didn't respond, but he knew his smile was more than enough. Contrary to many, he viewed silence itself as simply another form of communication between two people. The ability to simply enjoy another's presence was not often taken advantage of.

Once the sun finished setting, Emerald got up and dusted off her pants. "I'd better head back, my teammates are probably wondering where I am."

"Mine too," he said, standing as well. "Thanks again for the day, I had an excellent time." He bowed slightly. Emerald nodded in response before turning back to Beacon.

"See you around, Ren."


	9. Chapter 9

**Welcome back, and thanks so much to everybody who's been reading, reviewing, following, and favoriting! This story is so fun to write, but knowing others are also enjoying it makes it especially worthwhile.**

* * *

The second Ren stepped into the JNPR dorm room he was assaulted with questions. Nora, Pyrrha, and Jaune crowded around him, firing off one by one.

"Ohmygosh, how did it go?"

"Why do you have paint on your face?"

"Noooo wayyyy! Did you guys kiss?"

"Let's give him some space," Pyrrha, ever the voice of reason, spoke up. The three backed away from him. Jaune sat down on his bed, Pyrrha at her desk, while Nora simply backed up a couple inches while trembling with excitement.

"How did it go?!" she finally blurted out with arms spread wide, unable to contain herself.

"It went well," Ren answered, chuckling at his teammates' antics. "And to answer your questions, I took Emerald paintballing. And no," he continued, covering Nora's mouth with his hand when she attempted to interrupt, "we didn't kiss."

"Sounds like you had quite a filling day," Jaune commented.

"Good idea!" Nora whipped around to him, causing him to flinch under the sudden weight of her attention. "Speaking of 'filling,' let's get food, and we can talk about your date while we eat!"

"I have worked up a bit of an appetite," Ren admitted. "Nora," he added as a sidenote, "try not to drool on your shirt on the way there this time. You know that doesn't wash out too well."

"Sorry Renny, I'll do my best!" She saluted, quickly gulping afterwards, presumably swallowing her salivation. Ren looked away, shuddering.

"Let's go."

As Jaune led the way down the hallways, Ren gave a brief overview of his date. He mentioned how fluidly he and Emerald had worked together in the second round, and explained that the pink stain on his cheek was the result of a Spruce Willis-esque shootout.

"It matches the pink in your hair," Pyrrha said, smiling at his description of the events.

"Funny you should mention that. . ."

They wrapped up dinner shortly, each of them intent to get to their own devices. Normally, Ren would've expected Nora to drill him about his date with surgical precision, but Jaune had priorly challenged her to a 'Maiden Kart' competition. He made a mental note to thank the blond at a later time for saving him from the interrogation. Although, he figured he had only delayed the inevitable. He wasn't sure what Pyrrha would get up to since it was her and Jaune's day off from their daily rooftop combat practice. Presumably, she would be enjoying some soft-core Mistralian romance novella while drinking tea. _Perhaps I'll join her._

He ended up doing just that, enjoying his second reread of _Ninjas of Love 2: Two Ninja Paradise_ while sharing some of Pyrrha's Catnip tea. At one point he glanced over to check on her. She read with a continuous pink blush, devouring the words with wide, enraptured eyes. Her reading choices had, at the start of the year, been quite tame, but she had slowly branched out; every book she read was a little bit more risqué than the last. She hadn't yet made it to the _Ninjas of Love_ level, but that would doubtless take some time. As it was, her facial expressions were an endless source of entertainment.

He continued watching for a few more moments before returning to his own book. Aside from the occasional sips of tea and the constant bickering between Nora and Jaune, Ren enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere.

After half an hour of quiet reading, Pyrrha sighed and closed her book with a loud _snap_. Ren jumped at the sound, usually she wasn't the one to indulge in noisy book-closing. He looked over to her questioningly. Her expression stopped him from asking his next question - her eyes carried a frustrated and somewhat hopeless look.

Ren smiled knowingly. "Let me guess, you just finished the book and now you don't know what to do next?"

She sighed again. "Actually, that isn't the case this time. It's. . . I'm afraid it's a little more complicated than that."

"Oh." He frowned. If Pyrrha was in a bad mood, there wasn't too much question about the source. She was the perfect student, and excellent fighter, and had plenty of close friends within her own team and team RWBY, and was generally well-favored by the professors of Beacon. That meant if she was frustrated. . .

"Does it have something to do with. . ." he trailed off, quietly gesturing in Jaune's direction with his book. She hesitated before nodding. Ren checked to make sure Jaune and Nora were still absorbed in their game before speaking again. "If it's something you'd like to talk about, I'm here."

"Thank you, Ren. I think I could use a little advice." She wrung her hands in frustration. "I'm just not sure how to make what we have. . ." she trailed off, searching for the right words.

"Well-defined?" he supplied. Pyrrha sighed again.

"Right," she confirmed, looking again in Jaune and Nora's direction. "Could we possibly talk somewhere more private tomorrow?"

"Of course, I'd be glad to help." The small smile Pyrrha gave eased his worries, and she returned to her book, looking slightly less troubled.

"Thank you, I'm really not too good at this sort of thing."

* * *

After a good night's sleep, Ren and Pyrrha reconvened in Beacon's resident coffee bar, _The_ _Relic._ The small shop was built into the side of one of the lecture halls and featured an outside veranda with tables at which students dined. After ordering, Ren and Pyrrha chose a table at one of the further edges, out of earshot from the other students. A faint jazz saxophone played from the speakers, creating a calm mood that complimented the warm sunshine and slight breeze.

Ren and Pyrrha sat opposite one another, leaning back in their chairs and enjoying the silence while they waited for their tea to be brewed. Their silence was not broken when the waitress, a diminutive mouse-eared Faunus, set their drinks down. "Enjoy the tea," he said quietly. They nodded their thanks, each taking a few sips of the drinks, until Ren sat forward in his seat.

"I've noticed you and Jaune have been pretty close recently. But then you mentioned that there was an issue. . . Do you mind telling me what's going on?" Pyrrha leaned forward as well, leaning her elbows on the table and rubbing her face in her hands.

"Of course. Well, the thing is. . ." she trailed off, trying to find the right words. "You see. . ."

"Go ahead and say what's on your mind, and then we can clean up the details after," Ren advised, smiling.

"I'm not sure if Jaune likes me," she suddenly said, words tumbling out of her mouth. Ren raised an eyebrow. "In a romantic sense, I mean," she clarified. Ren's other eyebrow went up. "Does. . . that make sense?"

"I see what you're saying," he answered. _Does she really not see what's been happening between them? Of course he likes you!_

"We've been really good friends for a while now, and I feel like in the last couple months we've been really close. But I'm not sure if he's interested in me in the same way that I am in him. He's really nice, but isn't he that way to everyone? And he's stopped hitting on Weiss, which I'm grateful for. But he hasn't been hitting on me in the same way, so it's hard to tell!" She took a break to take a somewhat uneasy sip of tea, the cup shaking. "Do you think there's a chance that he could like me back?" she looked up at him worriedly, as if expecting his next words would crush her soul. He did his best to smile reassuringly.

"Both you and Jaune are dancing around your affection for each other without addressing it, because you're both too scared that the other doesn't feel the same way. But you definitely are of the same mind when it comes to romantic intentions," he explained. "Which, I might add, it seems that everybody _but_ the two of you can see," he added with a smile. Pyrrha's eyes went wide.

"Are - are you sure?"

"I am. Know that I say this with the highest respect, but Jaune is not the most. . . forward person. He has trouble acknowledging his feelings, and he can be frustratingly dense at times."

"But he didn't have any trouble hitting on Weiss."

"I'd hazard a guess and say that it's because it wasn't genuine affection. Sure, Weiss is beautiful, but to Jaune she probably wasn't much more than that. What I mean is Jaune didn't have any other reason to like her besides the fact that she was beautiful. When he was still under the impression that his playboy attitude was the right way to go, he would have been liable to hit on anybody." Pyrrha dropped her head with a sigh.

"But realize," he continued, "that as soon as he felt genuine attraction, he dropped the act."

"You mean he. . . he never tried the playboy approach on me because he valued me for more than my looks?"

Ren nodded vigorously, grinning. "Now you get it. As opposed to anybody else, Jaune legitimately cares about you; he doesn't want to do anything that could mess that up."

"But he couldn't!"

"No," he agreed, sipping his tea, "I doubt he could. But he doesn't know that. And neither do you." Pyrrha contemplated his words silently, sipping her tea in turn. She swallowed nervously.

"You're saying that it would be best if I made my intentions more clear?"

Ren shook his head. "I'm saying you'll _need_ to. Jaune isn't the type to make the first move, at least not romantically. He doesn't have the confidence yet. Maybe he will in the future, but do you really want to wait that long?"

"No," she admitted, "I don't."

"Then you should set a time and place, and tell him how you feel."

"But what should I tell him?"

"Say whatever you feel is most accurate. Remember, you can't get it wrong if it's the truth. I believe you said that some time ago in response to the same question." Pyrrha fidgeted, likely attempting to map out a future conversation with the blond. "Why don't you invite him out to a fancy dinner?" Ren suggested. "That way you can set the mood and tell him how you feel afterwards. It would also give you some time to gauge the atmosphere."

Alarm flashed in her eyes. "Don't you think that it might be a little bit awkward?"

"It'll only be awkward at first. Once you start a conversation, that will fade." Pyrrha took a moment to respond.

"I have to admit, the idea makes me nervous."

"If it makes you feel better, I could be there too, at a distance. I'll be there if you need me."

"That. . . would actually help," she said, breathing a small sigh of relief. "The idea of suddenly doing that alone scares me."

"You'll be fine," he reassured her. "Try not to overthink it. It's just going to be a quiet dinner. You two have eaten together alone before, right?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

"I suppose so." she said, beginning to smile. "Thank you so much for this, Ren. I'm not sure what I would've done if I hadn't talked to you."

"I'll find a nice place and make a reservation under your name. Until then, don't stress so much."

"Do you think he'll say yes?"

"I would bet my life on it," he replied. Pyrrha smiled warmly at his confident tone. "The confidence you exude on the battlefield and in the classroom, try to make that show in your romantic pursuits. You're very kind, intelligent, and graceful. The problem is that you don't see those qualities in yourself."

Pyrrha got compliments all the time, but her bashfulness tended to make her take them for what they were: superficial praise. However, due to Ren living with her and team JNPR for the better part of a year, she was much more likely to consider his words as honest observations. Everybody knew that Ren didn't give half-baked compliments, but few knew his kind words bordered more on the side of logical assessment; his words were never spoken without care and candor.

"Do you really think so?"

"Of course. Jaune would have to be an utter fool to say no to you. And while he may miss the point from time to time, I am confident in saying that he is nowhere near _that_ dense."

* * *

After wrapping up their lunch with less-important idle chit chat, Ren and Pyrrha parted ways. She headed back to the dorm to train with Jaune, who would likely groan at the thought of training on a weekend. _However, he's been complaining less,_ Ren mused fondly. _He's been putting more and more effort into improving. Probably to please Pyrrha._ He smiled at the thought. _Now to find a restaurant._

Ren made his way to the school library, preferring to use the larger computer screens for his search. He searched for the better part of an hour, dismissing options with slight shakes of his head. Although he intended to choose a venue with reasonable prices, he found that doing so was becoming increasingly difficult due to his specifications. If he could find a restaurant that had a good view, excellent food, a romantic atmosphere, and cheap prices, he'd be happy. Sadly, every restaurant he could find that met his standards was somewhat expensive. But, he intended to give Jaune and Pyrrha the best dinner around, prices be damned.

He eventually settled on a restaurant on the coast of Vale, with windows facing outward over the ocean toward Patch. Famous for its large selection of made-to-order grilled seafood, _Vale Piscator_ was pricey enough to make him uncomfortable, but met all his other needs. Deciding to make reservations for the following Saturday, he typed in the number of seats and tables that would be necessary. The reservation for Jaune and Pyrrha's table went off without a hitch; he chose a private booth with an excellent view over the Sea of Sanus. However, when he attempted to reserve a table for himself across the room with a good view of Pyrrha's table, his request was rejected. He ignored the error message, refreshing the page and trying again to reserve his single table. Again, his request was rejected. He picked a different table this time, but the results were the same as the first two times.

Ren frowned, zooming in on the small red print that had appeared below the error message each time. "Reservations must include a minimum of two persons," he mumbled aloud. "Ah." If he wanted to shadow Jaune and Pyrrha's date, he would need somebody to accompany him. _Perhaps I could ask Nora to come with me. . ._ He quickly dismissed the idea. Nora would be grateful for the invite, but choosing her would undoubtedly lead to having his cover blown. _I need somebody with. . . less presence. Perhaps team SSSN's Scarlet?_

He dismissed that idea as well. He needed somebody he knew well enough to explain the situation to. Somebody who was not only stealthy, but also good at watching others. _In other words, I need a thief,_ he concluded, snapping his fingers.

 _I'll ask Emerald!_


	10. Chapter 10

**I tried something a little bit different with this chapter, following a suggestion I received about two months ago from a guest reviewer. This chapter wasn't originally going to exist, but I thought it might be a fun to have at least a single chapter from Emerald's point of view, and this was an excellent time to do it. Please tell me what you think! I'll probably add more if people like it; it was enjoyable for me to write!**

 **As always, thanks to those who read, review, follow, and favorite!**

* * *

Classes felt like they were dragging on forever. Ren was, in his own opinion, one of the most focused and well-studied students in Beacon Academy, but even he had his limits. Professor Port's lecture was testing those limits.

He had remained mostly attentive for the first half of the ninety-minute monologue, his avid notetaking slowly dying down as the professor went on. Eventually his pencil slipped on the page, his concentration having wandered midway through a sentence. With a sigh he had placed the pencil down, content to cut his losses and focus on listening while his chin rested in his hand. This proved to be a mistake. In his idle position, Ren's mind wandered from topic to topic, covering nearly every subject except the subject that Professor Port was covering. To be fair, even in his most bored state Ren sincerely doubted his mind would ever be amused by winding and convoluted tales of Peter Port's conquests, both the physical and romantic.

Ren sighed, looking around the room at the other students for what was certainly not the first time. _The worst part about this lecture,_ he had decided, _is that none of my friends are in it._ In fact, looking around proved that most, if not all, of the students in the class were upper-classmen. He found it strangely comforting to notice that even with their alleged greater experience and wisdom in school, many were having just as much, or more, trouble enjoying the class as him.

With yet another quiet sigh, Ren broke one of his personal rules by pulling his scroll from his pocket and turning it on. After Professor Goodwitch had caught Yang texting someone during a combat theory class and read the texts aloud, Ren had imposed the rule upon himself. He may not have personal information to hide, but he much preferred to lower the amount of potential distractions during class anyway; Nora was enough of a distraction by herself. Until now.

He opened the messaging app and searched for Emerald's contact information, pulling up a blank space for his text. If Professor Port was going to waste his time by making him sit through a lecture, Ren would do his best to make the time actually useful. He set about composing the dinner invitation.

 _Dear Emerald, As you may or may not have noticed, two members of my team are romantically involved, or, they will be soon. At the request of Pyrrha, I've made dinner arrangements for the two of them at a place called 'Vale Piscator' in hopes of speeding along the romantic process. I've also made reservations for a small table not too far away, at which I will sit and watch to make sure their dinner goes well. However, the minimum reservation I could get for myself is a table for two. You can probably see where I'm going with this. Would you like to come along to Vale Piscator with me and shadow my teammates' romantic dinner?_

After double-checking his message for typos, Ren sent it, placing his scroll on his desk with a small smile. _At least part of this lecture period is interesting._

* * *

Emerald was sitting in class when her scroll vibrated with a notification. Of course in stark contrast to Ren, her scroll had already been open when she received his message. The notification interrupted the game she was playing; she barely held herself back from growling before she realized who the message was from. She paused her game, then thinking better of it, quit out of the application entirely. Talking to Ren was infinitely more interesting than her game anyway, and as long as she had a way to entertain herself during class, she wouldn't complain about _how_ she was being distracted.

She read over his message slowly, making sure he was asking what she thought he was. She raised her eyebrows critically as she typed her response.

 _You want my help to be a matchmaker, or some thing? you know im not really into that romantic stuff…._ She snapped her scroll shut when she was finished. His response came through much faster than she anticipated.

 _I thought you might say something like that, so allow me to pitch the idea to you in a slightly different way. I need somebody to come with me that is stealthy and can keep a low profile. You're the only person I know that fits the bill. Not only that, but I figured you may find spying on the awkwardly romantic couple to be somewhat enjoyable._

Emerald read the message, surprised to find herself swayed by his argument. An addition to his latest message appeared a second later.

 _The food looks really good, too._

She shrugged, finding herself agreeing to the idea. _Not only do I get good food, but the chance to spy on a pair of lovestruck idiots while I eat that food? Good enough for me!_ She set about making a response, taking care that she didn't sound too overeager.

 _That souds like it could be fun , normally id say no, but youve convinced me._

 _but do i need to wear anythign differrent?_

 _Yes, in order to not stand out you'll want to wear a dress of some sort. It doesn't need to be overly decadent, just respectable. Is that acceptable?_

Emerald bit her lip as she read through his words. Other than the school uniform she was currently wearing and her combat outfit, she didn't have anything else to her name. She replied anyway.

 _Yea i got one, should be fine. Ill talk to ou later though, i have to go for now._

If she was going to go to a dinner that required a dress, then she needed a dress. Emerald grit her teeth, chastising herself. _Finding a dress is going to be such a pain, why did I agree to this?_ Her expression changed into a smile though as she came up with the beginnings of a plan.

 _It's a matter of perspective, really,_ she thought to herself. _I can either consider this a royal pain in my ass, or I can go steal a dress from an unsuspecting shop and have some fun._ Her grin widened, baring teeth as she thought about the face the cashier would undoubtedly make when they realized their most expensive dress disappeared from right under their nose. _And while I'm at it, I could steal some jewelry for the occasion too._ Emerald smiled, her plan thought out. _A girl gotta have her fun!_

Professor Oobleck strolled back and forth across the classroom, lecturing about one thing or another. Emerald had long since stopped listening, and now was trying to find a way to make eye contact with him. It took a minute and a short cough, but he finally looked over at her. In the brief time that he made eye contact, Emerald activated her semblance, feeling the customary drain on her aura as it affected his mind.

She stood up with confidence, beginning to walk out. "See ya, loser," she said to Mercury, who had been sitting next to her. He stood up as well, not wanting to be left behind in the torturous lecture.

"Not a chance I'm sitting through this either," he snorted, falling in behind her. He jumped when the professor whipped to face him, shouting.

"Mr. Black! You should know I do not allow students to up and leave my classroom! If people left whenever they wanted, why, we'd have utter chaos! Now sit back down this instant! If you do not learn from history, how can you expect to avoid the same mistakes your ancestors once caused?" Mercury's mouth fell open, along with those of the rest of the class, as Emerald smirked, still walking. Professor Oobleck simply stared at Mercury as he tried to piece together what was happening. His eyes finally narrowed as Emerald crossed the threshold, completing her escape.

"You bitch!" came his yell from the classroom.

"Detention! While in my class you will refrain from using that kind of language!"

Emerald snickered as she walked away. _Worth it._ She returned to her team's dorm room a few minutes later, knocking gently on the door before admitting herself. Although it was technically her's as much as anyone else's, she preferred to dial down her crass attitude and express at least a modicum of decorum when around Cinder. Her raven-haired teammate happened to be sitting on her bed, weaving dust into her signature scarlet dress with a needle. Neo was nowhere to be seen, which was no surprise. She preferred to spend her time with Roman Torchwick. At least, that's what Emerald figured, it wasn't as if Neo had ever told her as much.

Cinder looked up from her work, pausing the needle in mid-pull. "Emerald. This is a surprise. I didn't expect you to be back so early." Emerald blanched at the woman's words.

"I-I'm sorry Cinder, is this a bad time? I was just going to change, and then I'll be out of your way." she held her hands together behind her back so Cinder wouldn't see her fidgeting.

"Not at all, your presence is merely unexpected, though not unwelcome. Where are you going?"

"I was planning to go into town to pick up a dress," she explained guiltily, as if she were admitting to some crime. She trailed off, wondering how best to explain her dinner plans with Ren. Luckily, Cinder cut her off before she could continue her explanation.

"Oh of course, you said you needed one for the upcoming school dance, didn't you? It's rather early still but I can understand; it's better to take care of these things before supplies run out."

"Y-yes, I just wanted to get it out of the way."

Cinder gave a nod of approval, then frowned. "But you don't really know much about dress buying, do you?" she drawled, making the question sound more like an observation.

"No, ma'am," Emerald admitted. "Do you have any advice?" For the first time, Cinder placed her needle down and gave Emerald her full attention.

"Yes, I could give some suggestions," she said, standing and circling Emerald. "Stand straight, I need to get a good look at you." Emerald complied, spine going rigid. Her heart began beating faster when Cinder placed her hand underneath her chin and tilted her head up, exposing her neck. After a few more moments of observation, Cinder removed her fingers and sat back down on the bed, focusing on her work once more. "Get a dark green dress, the color with match nicely to the lighter shade of your hair. But do make sure the skirt doesn't go to your feet. You're slender, but not tall enough for a full-length," she said, waving her hand disinterestedly. "As for shoes, wear the ones from your combat outfit."

"Thank you, Cinder," Emerald said, backing out of the room slowly in case she wanted to say anything else. Cinder stayed silent, wholly absorbed once more in her work. Emerald closed the dorm room door and leaned against it with a sigh of relief.

While Cinder had taken her in and provided for her, and she would be forever in her debt, part of the confident and dangerous way Cinder carried herself scared Emerald. It wasn't just that Cinder was the most powerful person in the room, it was that she _knew_ she was the most powerful. Emerald considered herself headstrong with an air of something resembling "unfuckwithablity," but being around Cinder instantly removed her confidence. Cinder may be kind, but the relationship between her and her subordinates was always kept crystal clear: Cinder was the leader, and she expected others to follow without fail.

Clearing her head, Emerald left the dorm building, heading toward the airship docks. She had made the trip to into the city proper many times, and as such had slowly become accustomed to the view the airships afforded. She spent the duration of the flight playing on her scroll.

After arriving in the Commercial District, she realized one of the only flaws in her plan: she had no idea where she was going. A map of the surrounding area posted on a billboard gave her some options, but didn't feature any specific shop names. She decided to go to the closest shopping mall anyway; figuring that if she wandered around long enough, something would pop out at her. The mall came into view after a few minutes of walking. Emerald entered, thankful that the weekday and regular work hours were sparing her from dealing with crowds. _But it would've given me people to pickpocket,_ she mused. _I'll come back during the weekend sometime._

As she strolled around the immense building, she found herself getting lost in the upbeat jazzy music, an easy smile on her face. No matter how many times she did it, she doubted she would ever get used to the idea of shopping. Growing up on the streets meant that she never had the money for things she wanted, even the simple things like meals and a roof. At least at first. That had changed when she discovered her semblance, and changed again when she had met Cinder. From there her life had dramatically improved. Now she could walk with confidence, secure in knowing that her next meal wouldn't be a struggle to get. It was nice to walk by shop windows and look at things she could afford with her own money, Not that she'd actually _buy_ it, but she was thankful regardless.

A line of dresses caught her eye as she walked past a large shop. Three mannequins stood in the window, each adorned with a long flowing dress. Although they didn't sparkle or have inset stones they were far from plain, each color looking as if it had been placed on the fabric with purpose and care. The dresses were each vibrant in their own way, but not to the point of blinding radiance. _This will probably work._

As soon as she walked into the shop, however, it was immediately clear that she had no idea what she was doing. She wandered between clothing racks and more mannequins for a few minutes before sighing in defeat. Even if she knew where to look for what she wanted, she didn't know what she wanted in the first place.

"Need help, girl?" Emerald turned, and then immediately wished she hadn't. The voice belonged to an old, angry looking woman with a large hooked nose and beady eyes. Her skin hung loose on her bones, and she showed far too much of it for it to be considered decent. Emerald prided herself on her professional response.

"Yes, I'm looking for a half-length forest-green dress."

"Well, we have something that might work," the woman said, critically eyeing Emerald's figure, "but I seriously doubt you could afford it. You have the eyes of a street rat."

Emerald bristled, but responded coolly without missing a beat, "I can assure you, the amount of Lien is no issue."

"If you insist," the woman responded with an airy tone. "Follow me."

 _Follow my fist as it crashes into your fat mouth._ She followed anyway while the woman led her to a changing room, pulling a green dress from a nearby mannequin and shoving it into Emerald's arms. "This should work," she growled. "It covers up that damn chest of yours too, I'm doing you a favor."

Emerald slammed the changing room door in the woman's face. She grumbled aloud while she pulled the dress on, but then immediately stopped when caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. The dress had a very modest cut, the front reached up to her neck and around it like a choker. Ironically, it was probably one of the most modest items of clothing she had. The back, however, dropped very low; if she craned her neck she could see that it left little to the imagination in terms of her back muscles. She flexed her arms and made loops with them to test the flexibility, but the waist kept riding up. She pulled it down for the second time, then examined it more carefully.

 _Oh, this is a high-waisted dress,_ she concluded. She allowed it to settle comfortably around her stomach, and found the fabric flattered her figure much better now that it wasn't stretched. _It even shows some tasteful sideboob!_ she thought as she turned, beginning to grin. _I can't wait to see Ren's expression when he sees me in this!_ She examined the length next, heeding Cinder's advice about avoiding a full-length. It extended just past her knees. The forest green color matched nicely with her hair, much like Cinder had said it would.

She removed the dress and folded it carefully before putting her original clothing back on. The woman, who was waiting at the counter, turned to her as she exited. "Well?"

"I'll take it," Emerald responded with a bored tone, unwilling to show that she was actually very happy with the dress. The woman snorted.

"Lot of good it'll do. You'll need to clean up quite a bit before you can make a dress like that look good."

"Don't care," Emerald snapped back, approaching the counter. "How much."

"Four-hundred Lien," she said with a smirk. "Or is that out of your price range, missy?" Emerald locked eyes with her, letting her semblance cut into her aura.

"Of course not," she said sweetly, handing the woman a dirty napkin that she had pulled from her back pocket. "Four-hundred Lien is nothing to me."

The woman looked surprised as she examined the napkin. "Huh. didn't think you had it in you." She accepted the napkin and stuffed it into the cash register. "Now get out of my shop."

"Gladly," Emerald responded sweetly, already walking out.

She spat on the sidewalk as she emerged into the sunlight, but she wore a smile of satisfaction on her face. _Serves that bitch right._


	11. Chapter 11

**Welcome! College classes started yesterday, so there's a small chance that updates take a slight bit longer than usual. Don't fear, though, because updates will, at the most, be every ten days.**

 **As always, thanks for reading, reviewing, following, and favoring! (Does anybody know how to make en-dashes on this site)**

* * *

"Ah, there you are, I hope I haven't kept you waiting for too long," Ren said, approaching Emerald. He had asked her to wait for him at the front of the school, but hadn't specified exactly where in the front he would meet her. As such, he had run late and then panicked slightly when she wasn't within eyeshot. Only when he checked outside did he find her, which was the one place he hadn't looked; in the evening Beacon Academy became somewhat breezy which would not agree with people who were unprepared for the cool winds.

"That's unlike you," she said, turning to acknowledge his presence. "I never took you for the type to leave a woman waiting."

"It seems you have once again underestimated my capacity to disappoint," he replied with a wink. "Although as long as I'm able to please you, I suppose late is better than never." A slight color rose to her cheeks, but she didn't back down. "Or perhaps," he continued, "maybe you'd be kind enough to assume that my delay was entirely intentional? Good things _do_ come to those who wait."

Emerald's eyebrows went up in response to his more than slightly suggestive tone. Her cheeks now displayed an even brighter shade of red. In embarrassment she tucked her hands behind her back, conceding defeat by bowing her head to break eye contact. Ren congratulated himself silently. _It pays off to be bold, it seems._

"We should probably go," she finally said, hair being tousled by the wind.

"Oh, of course," he said in surprise, having momentarily forgotten the purpose to his meeting Emerald. She didn't miss the opening in his mental armor, taking advantage of his lapse in concentration.

"Or were you so stunned by my beauty that you forgot why we were here?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips with rekindled confidence.

"I-" _Damn, you're closer to the truth than you probably realize._ "Well, you're still wearing that bulky jacket, so I couldn't say for sure," he pointed out, gesturing to her large black overcoat.

"Yeah, sure," she drawled. "Nice save."

Ren laughed at her dry words, leading them down the docks to the airship that would bring them close to their destination. The airships that docked at Beacon Academy only went to largest parts of the city, performing lengthy circuitous loops before returning to the school. Thanks to the relatively low volume of travel between Beacon and the city during the school week, students had to plan carefully to avoid getting stuck at an airship station for multiple hours while they waited for a ride. Ren had planned the dinner to last about three hours at most- but if it went longer or shorter, improvising wouldn't be impossible. It was the weekend, after all, so airship schedules accounted for higher levels of city-wide transit. He was confident that he and Emerald would be able to get back to the dorms without sharing a ship with Jaune and Pyrrha.

Ren and Emerald watched over the city during the airship ride, lulled into a comfortable silence by the gentle patter of a light rain against the windows. The rain let up by the time they landed, replacing the smell of the city with the scent of freshly wet earth. The short walk to the _Vale Piscator_ was punctuated by both of their stomachs growling simultaneously as the restaurant came into view, the two of them shared a look and both chuckled.

They made it to the front of the restaurant as the sun began its final descent toward the horizon. Ren had of course planned for this timing; Jaune and Pyrrha would begin their romantic dinner being greeted by a beautiful sunset over the Sea of Sanus.

The inside was just as decadent as the pictures on their website had shown. Large trellises that supported vines divided dining booths from one another, adding a vineyard aesthetic to the privacy of each space. The edges of each booth were lined with already lit candles, which-apart from the small chandeliers-were the only source of light. The end result was a sort of dusky level of light: bright enough that customers could clearly see each other, but also dark enough that shadows were elongated and given volume. Ren immediately decided he liked the place.

A small podium took up the center of the greeting area, which Ren approached. The waitress greeted him politely with a small bow.

"Welcome to _Vale Piscator,_ where we serve only the finest variety of oceanic cuisine! How may I help you?"

"I have a reservation for two," Ren stated, glancing at his scroll to check the time. "Under Nikos." The waitress nodded, but then looked at him in confusion after double-checking her list.

"Just so you're aware, there is a second reservation under Miss Nikos's name in a quarter hour. Is that an error?"

Ren had adjusted the reservation times so that he and Emerald would be seated roughly fifteen minutes before the soon-to-be couple, and had even warned the waitstaff that they intended to take their time. Of course, the venue had gone out of its way to assure him that it wouldn't cause any problems.

"No, that's correct. Our two groups will be dining completely separately, but we reserved tables at the same time."

"Oh, I see," she said, writing something on her list with a look of relief. "If you would follow me, I will show you to your seats."

"Thank you."

The waitress led them to a small booth built into the wall of the building. They sat underneath an arch, their view of most of the other tables cut off by more trellises. Ren worried for a moment that Pyrrha's table would be out of view, but his anxiety was soon dispelled when he noticed a small, empty table near the opposite edge of the restaurant. Framed by large sliding glass windows, Pyrrha's table would afford an unparalleled view of the sunset and the ocean. Ren pointed as much out to Emerald as they sat.

"Wow," she said, sounding genuinely impressed. "You really care about these two, don't you? Those seats must've been expensive."

"They were," he confirmed, smiling. "But Pyrrha was the one who paid for them. And I definitely care about them, a great deal. They've treated me very well since we formed our team, I want to return the favor."

"And the way you're doing that is by setting them up?"

Ren laughed. "That's the gist of it. Jaune and Pyrrha share a mutual romantic interest, but they're not the most. . . honest with their emotions. I hope this dinner acts as sort of a push in the right direction."

"And that's why you're here, to act as a sort of safety net?"

"Exactly. I'm very sure that my presence wouldn't be necessary if they were just a little bit more brave. However, Pyrrha asked me to come along, so I told her I would. If all goes well, we'll just provide a silent overwatch from our hidden position."

"I can do stealth," Emerald grinned.

"I can think of nobody better," Ren agreed. "It's getting hot, I'm going to remove my coat." He stood from his seat and unbuttoned his overcoat, hanging it on the coat rack that was conveniently placed next to the table. Emerald joined him, beginning to remove her jacket. She sighed with relief when the garment was removed, as if it had greatly restricted her movement.

Ren knew he was immediately in trouble. Emerald's dress was, considering her normal fashion choice, surprisingly modest in the front, the high neckline rising to encircle her throat. Although the dress accentuated her features masterfully, it was the back that was the most dangerous part.

Where modesty had been the rule for the front, it was thrown to the wind for the back. Emerald's entire back was exposed to the air, from shoulders to waist, leaving nothing to the imagination in terms of form and musculature. Had he not been at least a little prepared, he wouldn't have been able to look away at all. He managed to shift his vision to the table as Emerald hung up her coat, giving him an extended look at her flank from his peripheral vision.

 _It also reveals her side nicely,_ he thought, biting his lip. _Too nicely. This is bad, I need to be careful not to stare._ Of course, while he was worrying about being rude he also realized that Emerald wouldn't mind. In fact, she'd be more than happy to catch him staring, it would be more ammunition to tease him with. Suddenly, being caught took on a whole new level of importance.

He sat back down, watching Emerald as she did the same. _I need to compliment her, she deserves that much at the very least._

"Your outfit is stunning, you really make that dress look wonderful," he said simply, causing Emerald to turn away slightly to fidget with her menu. "But isn't that high neck a little stuffy?" he asked in genuine curiosity. Unfortunately for him, Emerald had a retort prepared.

"Are you saying you'd like to see me wearing less?"

 _Damn! I misstepped, and now I'm paying the price!_

"Ahh- well," he stuttered, completely unprepared to fire back a quick rebuttal, "the dress suits you, as it were." Ren brought up his menu to hide the flush on his face. _I lost big time on that one._

"Does it make you sad not to see a large amount of my skin?" She raised both her arms to adjust her ponytail, turning to the side to expose her mostly uncovered flank to him. She casually flexed her back muscles as she rolled her shoulders.

"That's not necessarily the case," he answered carefully, barely preventing his eyes from wandering over her skin. "It's just that one eventually gets used to seeing certain things, and sudden deviation from the standard can be. . . jarring."

Emerald narrowed her eyes, no doubt considering pressing the verbal attack. She could easily have done so, Ren was fully on the defensive. But, luckily for him, she relented. Smiling, she changed the subject. "Have you decided on what you want to eat?" she gestured to his menu.

"Not yet," he replied, smiling gratefully, "but there's no need to rush. The guests of honor have only just arrived." Emerald diverted her attention to the side, in time to see a waiter usher Pyrrha and Jaune to their table. Pyrrha much overshadowed her companion, sporting a scarlet full-length sleeveless dress hidden underneath a heavy winter coat. She handed the coat to the waiter when he offered, revealing that her long hair was let down and flowed freely over her back.

Jaune wore a sharp suit, sporting a black bowtie to match his jacket. His pants looked freshly pressed which, considering his normal sense of fashion, was quite a feat.

"He cleans up nicely," Ren commented, impressed.

"Meh," Emerald shrugged, "your suit looks better."

"But they're nearly identical," he responded, confused.

"He's got a bowtie. I'm more of a necktie kinda girl," she said, eyeing Ren's black skinny tie. "They're sexier, more powerful."

"Really? I didn't know." Emerald shrugged. "I suppose I could see what you mean, though," he continued. "Bowties have an innocent quality to them." Emerald nodded in agreement, still watching Jaune and Pyrrha.

"They look kinda awkward."

"Give it a couple minutes," Ren advised, turning his attention to the extensive menu. "Their nervousness will subside once they see the menu. Probably."

Emerald chuckled, looking over hers as well. Ren chose his order relatively quickly-the Grilled Neptune's Bounty-but kept his menu raised as a facade so he could watch Emerald. Her eyes didn't skim over the menu choices; she looked at each item carefully, as if missing the slightest detail could create some sort of drastic problem. Almost as if she was trying to commit them all to memory. _No, she's not memorizing,_ he realized. _She. . . can't read very well._ His eyes widened.

Ren looked back to his menu in earnest, taking more time to read over each option. His choice wasn't going to change, but the last thing he wanted to do was call attention to Emerald and make her uncomfortable.

"What is Dem-Demersal?" she asked after a minute, chewing over the word in her mouth. Ren considered the fact that she was comfortable enough to ask for advice a monumental show of trust.

"Demersal? It refers to fish that feed from the bottom of bodies of water, like cod or flounder," he explained.

"That's what I want," she immediately said.

"I-are you sure? Bottomfeeders have a reputation for being kind of dirty fish. . ."

"Then don't you think it's fitting? We were both the street rats of our perspective worlds, starting at the bottom" she said wryly, smiling. Ren blinked.

"Comparing oneself to a fish in a complementary manner? That's new."

"I've got some surprises for you up my sleeves," she said, leaning forward. Ren matched her, minimizing the distance between them.

"You're not wearing sleeves." _Checkmate._

"You know," she said, completely ignoring his comment, "I had to buy a dress, _this dress,_ specifically for this occasion."

"Oh really?" Ren questioned. "I'm flattered you actually considered this meeting important enough to _buy_ it." His smile grew as he backed her into a corner. "But I thought you said you already had a dress? Could it be that you couldn't stand the idea of looking bad in front of me?"

"I-shit!" She turned away, blushing furiously. "I forgot I told you that!"

Unfortunately, Ren's gloating was cut short by the arrival of their waitress. Once they gave their orders, they took a moment to watch Pyrrha and Jaune. As Ren had expected, the awkwardness of their conversation had worn off now that they were busy admiring the menu. They talked easily, and while they were just out of earshot, it was easy to see that they were enjoying themselves. Pyrrha at one point even reared her head back to laugh, before becoming self-conscious and covering her mouth. Jaune didn't notice, laughing along with her. Ren and Emerald watched from their table, making small-talk about the happy pair.

"It looks like you weren't needed after all," Emerald said. Her voice didn't carry any hint of rudeness.

"Heh, I suppose not. I told Pyrrha that she's got the confidence she needs, but she just doesn't know it yet. I'm glad she seems to have found some of it," he said smiling. "We can probably focus on our dinner without worrying too much."

"Good thing too, here it comes!"

Emerald licked her lips eagerly as her plate of pan-seared fish was placed before her. "Please be careful with the plate, miss, it's very hot," the waitress warned. Emerald ignored her, rotating the dish to her liking. Halfway through the motion, she pulled her hand away with a hiss. Ren gave her a pointed look refraining from touching his own dish as it was given to him. After refilling their glasses of water, the waitress departed.

"Go ahead," Ren said, gesturing to her food. Emerald dug in immediately, having barely saved herself from drooling on the front of her dress.

After ten minutes of drawn out silence, Ren and Emerald leaned back in unison with heavy sighs, their plates clean. "Oof," Emerald huffed, taking a swig of water. "That was great."

"I couldn't possibly eat more," Ren agreed, wiping his lips with his napkin. "I do _not_ feel inclined toward dessert."

"As much as I'd like to disagree, I can't."

"Oh!" Ren said in surprise, interrupting to stare at Pyrrha and Jaune's table. "Look, it seems they're leaving." Sure enough, Jaune had stood, extending a hand to Pyrrha. She took it, allowing herself to be helped from her chair. When she lowered her hand as if to release his, Jaune suddenly intertwined their fingers, giving her a knowing smile. She blushed, but gripped his hand tightly in return. They did not separate their hands as they left, save for the short time it took them to put on their jackets, after which they returned to each other once more.

"Looks like everything worked out," Ren said in slight relief. They may not realize it, but now that their affections were out in the open, their lives had just gotten much easier. _No more witnessing awkward and uncomfortable conversations._

"They're. . . kinda cute," Emerald said thoughtfully.

"Not that I disagree, but I didn't take you for the overly romantic type." Emerald merely shrugged.

"Eh. Can't argue with the facts." She scratched her chin, rethinking her statement. "They're cute now. I'll give it. . . five days."

"Five days?"

"Five days," she confirmed. "Until they're hanging off each other like kids in love."

"To be fair, they are." Emerald groaned lightheartedly.

"Check, please."

* * *

"How was your dinner?" the waitress asked as they put on their jackets at the entrance.

"Excellent, thank you," Ren responded for them both.

"Actually, if we could buy one of your bottles of champagne on the way out, that would be great!" Emerald asked the waitress.

"Of course," she responded, a smile lighting her face. "If I could see your ID? Just a formality," she assured.

"Sure thing," Emerald produced her school ID from a pocket, flashing a smile as she handed it over. Ren waited until the waitress was looking at it carefully to whisper to Emerald.

"What're you doing? We're not of age!" he hissed. He was interrupted as the waitress looked up, handing the ID back.

"Just let me grab that for you," she said to Emerald, accepting a wad of Lien. "Thank you for your patronage."

Emerald turned to him. "Not of age? My ID says differently," she teased, sliding the card back into her pocket. "Like I said, I've got tricks up my sleeves."

"You know, I half expect you could walk into a store and straight up leave with all their items, without anyone batting an eye."

"You'd be surprised," she winked.

* * *

As they stepped out of the airship onto the docks, they were immediately greeted by a cold wind. It whipped their hair about, forcing them to rush to the safety of the main building to escape the cold. A freestanding wall gave them shelter; they leaned against it, side-by-side.

"Haah, damn it's cold."

"No kidding," Ren agreed. "We should get back to the dorms before we freeze." Emerald nodded, stepping away from the wall and then turning to face him.

"Thanks for taking me out," she said, bashfully presenting the bottle of champagne. Ren reached for it without missing a beat, placing his hand on top of hers.

"I had an excellent time, I should be thanking you. Are you sure you want to give me this?" he asked, removing his hand from hers to grab the neck of the bottle. "You know you don't owe me anything, right?"

"Sure, but I thought it would be a nice gift. Do you not want it?" she asked, her eyes narrowing in warning.

"No, I'll take it, gratefully," he said quickly. He turned the bottle and admired the ingredients list for a moment. "Oh wow, not only would this be really good for drinking, but I could also use it in some excellent food!"

"Then I'll expect you to cook for me soon."

Ren nodded in agreement. "It's a promise."

As soon as he met her eyes there was a slight rushing noise, as if the wind had somehow cut through the stone behind him to fly directly into his ear. His vision made a very slight jump; if he had been distracted he would've completely missed it.

Emerald stood still in front of him. Then, without warning, he felt a warmth on the side of his face. He met her eyes, puzzled, but received no response other than an eyebrow raised in confusion.

But a pair of soft lips had _definitely_ just pressed against his cheek. If only for a moment, he was sure he hadn't imagined it.

"What's up? You look like you're surprised."

"Ahh-no. It must've been my imagination, sorry," he said, shaking his head.

She grinned, turning to walk away. "I'll see ya later!" He met her over-the-shoulder wave with one of his own, before heading in the opposite direction to return to his dorm. _I should get some rest, my head feels fuzzy._

 _Must be the cold._


	12. Chapter 12

**It's been too long, and nobody is more unhappy about that than I. However, thanks to some scheduling rearrangements, I've come up with more time to write (most of this "rearranging" involves less sleep, but who needs it anyway?)! Anyway, I hope this chapter comes at a convenient time during this Valentine's Day. I have no plans besides finishing this chapter, so here's to writing, the best form of love there is!**

 **Though, I ramble. Thanks to all who read, review, follow, and favorite! I appreciate your patience when it comes to my update inconsistency, and I promise that the wait won't be as long next time.**

* * *

The training hall echoed with the sounds of combat, the clash of swords upon shields, the thuds of fists upon aura-protected skin. Yells accompanied each clash, grunts sounded with each impact. Professor Goodwitch's daily combat class had been scheduled for double time today, in order to make up for lost class time that Professor Ozpin had cut into with a school-wide assembly earlier that week. The students had all come prepared for a long day, the normal fatigue of class subsiding to excitement. After all, thanks to the longer class period, nearly everybody would be fighting today.

The current contenders faced each other with zeal, loud shouts punctuated by earth-shattering hits. The reinforced floor shook under the weight of their swings, threatening to break. Nora Valkyrie swung her hammer with glee from left to right, adroitly knocking aside Cardin's mace as if it were made of paper mache. Those that took Nora at face value often ended up regretting it; her speed and agility ended up surprising all but the most-prepared fighters. Years of swinging her oversized hammer Magnhild had allowed her to develop both her muscles and efficiency to their highest values. Nora wasted no movement, capitalizing on already built momentum to make her swings all the more devastating.

Knocking the most recent mace strike aside with little difficulty, Nora swung the hammer around her back, pulling the head in close to allow the handle to circle her neck. Picking it up on the return swing, she spun with it, adding the full force of her body to the spin. Carding raised his mace to block in the nick of time, but it did little to stop her. The head of the warhammer collided with Cardin's face, sending him sailing through the air. The boy's momentum was stopped by the arena wall, and cheers echoed as his aura broke completely in a flash of brown.

Nora took a minute to bask in the praise being thrown her way, flexing in multiple directions while giggling. As the raucous applause faded, Professor Goodwitch stepped forward. "This win goes to Miss Valkyrie," she stated in monotone, as if the result of the match had been easily foreseen before it even began. "Good job, your hammer strikes have only gotten faster. I see you've really taken my advice to heart. As for you Mr. Winchester," she addressed him, walking over to where he was slumped against the wall, "I've spoken to you about your weakness. . . how many times now?" She shook her head in exasperation. "Well, my advice still holds. The sooner you realize that not all your opponents can be beaten with brute strength, the sooner you will progress. Until then, I wouldn't bother holding high aspirations of any sort." She snorted, a little _too_ derisively, muttering mostly to herself as she walked away. "If only you would _listen_ , like Mr. Arc does. _Then_ you might actually make impressive progress like he has."

Ren allowed a proud smile to cross his face. Jaune had made progress in leaps and bounds recently, training himself nearly to the bone in the last couple weeks. His strikes had become consistent and powerful, his balance improved, and he had even begun using his shield for blunt attacks. He still had a long way to go, but he was strong enough to consistently beat most of the members of team CRDL.

"We have time for a few more matches, but please take a five minute break first," Glynda continued speaking, adjusting her glasses before adding, "I don't say this often, but you've earned it." The student body got to their feet, some stretching, others leaving the arena room temporarily. Ren stood as well, walking toward the center to congratulate Nora on her latest victory. Jaune and Pyrrha joined him, filing to either side as he walked. When she saw them, Nora jumped excitedly, launching herself into Ren's arms. Jaune and Pyrrha, prepared for this, braced their shoulders against Ren's back, preventing Nora's tackle from knocking him to the ground.

"I'll break his legs _next_ time, I promise!" she told Jaune. "I got a little distracted and forgot."

"That's okay, I can do it myself you know," he joked. "Good fight by the way!"

"Pretty soon Professor Goodwitch will let the two of you fight each other," Pyrrha said, laughing. Ren checked Jaune's reaction, expecting to see the boy become pale with fear. Subverting his expectations, Jaune looked enthused at the idea.

"I'll do my best!"

As the three teammates talked Ren stepped back from the group, looking around the room. His eyes skimmed over the uniforms of various students, searching for the tell-tale emerald-green hair of a certain thief. Emerald had been somewhat distant since their date five days ago, darting from room to class, and class to room as quickly as possible. She arrived right as the bell rang for class to commence, and left right as each lecture was dismissed, leaving no time for conversation.

Had it not been for how well their dinner had gone, Ren would've worried that he had done something to put her off; as it were, he was merely a little confused. However, Professor Goodwitch's class would be a good opportunity for them to finally talk. Neither of them had fought yet, and he was sure to be granted the opportunity to spar with her if he asked for it.

He bade a quick farewell to his teammates and jogged up the staircase through the arena seating, casting looks around the hallway once he got through the doorway. The long sunlit halls were emptying, students making their way back to the classroom to prepare for the final quarter of class. Emerald was nowhere in sight. _But I thought she left, where could she have gone? She was definitely there for the first half of class._

His musing continued as he took a few steps more toward one of the majestic windows that overlooked the Beacon Gardens. The garden shone brilliantly in the sunlight, the rays catching on the flowers and the small pond. When the clouds above shifted, the sun reflected dazzlingly on the glass. Ren looked away, blocking the sharp light with his hand. As he turned to the side, a subtle movement caught his eye. He stared at it with a frown, willing the sunspots to clear from his vision.

 _Is that - it is!_ Emerald stood near the end of the hallway, some distance away. Her hands were clasped nervously in front of her, her shoulders slouched in a position which could only be described as apologetic, or even submissive. She cowered in place, lowering her eyes before whomever was behind the corner. Ren craned his neck to see them but gave up after a moment, not wanting to risk closing the distance lest he were to be spotted.

Emerald seemed to be receiving a very stern lecture. She nodded occasionally, her lips moving slightly each time. _Yes ma'am. Of course._ Ren pressed himself close to the wall with a dark expression. Willing his breathing to still, he strained his eyes, forcing his other senses out of his mind. Emerald's one-sided interrogation continued for a couple moments, before she finally spoke up, loud enough for him to hear.

"But I don't want to do that!" she said, balling her hands into fists at her sides. Her outburst was very short lived, however, as a hand shot out from behind the corner and latched around her neck. Emerald grabbed at the arm with both her hands, attempting to force the fingers around her neck to release. As soon as she began scrabbling desperately, Ren kicked off the wall, moving in their direction. His intent to help was in vain, however, as the hand released her neck a moment later, retreating out of his view once again. As it moved, he caught the distinctive glimpse of a female's scarlet nails and a crimson sleeve with gold embroidery.

Emerald fell to the ground, coughing as she forced air back into her lungs. " _Don't_ question me again, Emerald," a voice warned, its tone sounding like it belonged to somebody who was as ruthless as her treatment of Emerald had just been. The assailant left then, footsteps fading into the distance and a door slamming.

Ren didn't bother making a pursuit, instead jogging the rest of the way to Emerald. When she saw him she forced herself to her feet, albeit shakily. "R-Ren!" she stammered, her voice hoarse. "What're you doing here?"

"Are you okay?" he asked back, ignoring her question. Of course, he already knew the answer to this. Emerald looked to the side, unwilling to meet his eyes.

"Yeah, I came out for fresh air. Started feeling sick," she finished lamely with shrug. She tried to play off her nervousness with a laugh, but the laugh turned immediately into another fit of coughing. As she shook, Ren noticed a distinct hand-shaped mark on her skin, conspicuously pink against her dark tones.

"Are you really okay?" he asked again, supporting her back as she finished coughing. "Your neck looks pretty bad, what happened?" Emerald's panicked expression prompted him to give her an easy out. "Did you burn yourself?" he added.

"O-oh, this? I uh. . . Yeah. Burned it with a curling iron. This morning, that is." Once again, Ren took note of her refusal to look him in the eye. He didn't comment on her obvious lie otherwise, instead helping steady her on her feet.

"If you ever need help. . ." he paused thoughtfully. "I hope you feel like you can ask me."

"I don't!" she snapped back immediately, shrugging his hand from her shoulder. Ren's raised eyebrow must've caused her concern, because she backed away a few steps, eyes wide. "I- ah. . . I don't need help, I mean," she quickly clarified. "Thanks and all that, but I'm fine," she declared, covering her neck with a hand, disguising the movement poorly with a halfhearted massaging motion. "I can take care of myself."

"I know." Ren simply acknowledged. "Why don't we spar?" he quickly changed the topic. When Emerald's expression softened, he knew he had made the right choice in moving the conversation along. Lingering on uncomfortable topics would only cause stress, and Emerald didn't look to be the picture of perfect serenity at the moment. "Professor Goodwitch's class still has forty-five minutes left, we could get a round in together if we ask for it."

Emerald sighed, running a hand through her hair.

"Good stress relief," he commented, "if nothing else." That brightened her expression somewhat, although it was only her eyes that smiled back at him.

"Sure, you've convinced me. A good fight might be nice."

"I'll see you on the floor, then." He expected a clever quip to come from her as she walked past him. Perhaps something about him ending up on the floor after she was finished pummeling him. To his surprise, Emerald passed him by with hunched shoulders, silent.

He knew that she wasn't the type to talk openly about her problems, and she was even less likely to ask for help. Advice maybe, but this situation seemed a bit more serious than the simple things. Now it was Ren's turn to sigh. _If nothing else, I hope I can take her mind off things._

* * *

Class recommenced four minutes later, students returning to their seats. Having spoken privately to Professor Goodwitch about the next fight, Ren made his way to the locker rooms to retrieve Stormflower, chancing upon Emerald. She had her back turned to him and was strapping her revolvers to her waist, fiddling with the buckle on the holsters. He took the opportunity to study her neck a little more closely while she was unaware of his presence. The finger-shaped marks on her skin were definitely minor burns, and if her movements were any indication, the mark left by her teammate's searing grip was quite painful. She jerked her head to the side to pop it, then immediately whimpered in pain, clutching at the burns.

"Ahh, fuck!" she muttered to herself, slouching further. Ren stepped quietly off to the side and hid near the door as she approached a mirror to check her reflection. "I guess it's what I deserve, though." She stared at herself in the mirror for longer than strictly necessary, eyes hooded.

A flash of pity coursed through him. " _You think you deserve that?"_ he wanted to ask. _You don't. You're worth so much more than that._ His expression became more grim as he quietly exited the locker room, back into the arena. Although he knew it wouldn't happen unless the situation became truly desperate, he wanted her to ask for help. He'd be more than happy to, and he knew his team would back him up the whole way. But even more importantly, he didn't want to butt in and make a mess of things. Complicated situations often required a delicate touch, he had found, and he didn't want to make things worse by blindly following through with good intentions. After all, perhaps this treatment was something new entirely to her as well.

Then again, something made him doubt it.

Emerald met him in the center of the arena, emerging from the lockers herself. Her usual cocky grin was replaced with narrowed eyes and pressed together lips. As a whole, her attitude spoke of a wary vigilance that thinly disguised a vicious appetite for fighting. Ren mentally readied himself for a more dirty session. If Emerald needed help with anything, he was resolved to do his best. And if that best meant entering a gruelling sparring match, then so be it.

No sooner that Professor Goodwitch's command to begin rang out, Emerald rushed forward with a growl, pulling her revolvers from her waist and flicking out the blades. Ren met her halfway, extending the blades of Stormflower as well, taking a small solace in the ritualistic ring of the extension. Their weapons connected in a pair of parallel crosses, sparks flying.

They disengaged a split second later, neither wasting time to make eye contact or a snarky one-liner. Their attacks had been blocked, and they didn't have time to waste. Ren spun on his heel, dropping low as he swung around, both of his blades pointed outward. One part of his deadly arc was parried, the other deflected; his arms went wide, leaving his torso open for an attack. Instead of allowing her to score a hit, Ren dropped backwards, kicking out with both his feet. They connected lopsidedly with Emerald's blades, which had nearly reached his chest, knocking them back for the single second he needed to jump to his feet and regain balance.

Although it would've been difficult for any other of the students to recognize it, the first few seconds of the match had already set the tone. This was not going to be a quick round between friends, but rather, it would be more akin to a cage match in a Vacuan brawl. Surprising even himself, Ren found the idea exciting. His pulse picked up, and he had to manually unclench his teeth. Then, Emerald attacked in a whirl of blades, and his fighting instincts took over.

Their weapons clattered together with a loud echo, drawing apart before their ears could even register the sound, before coming together once more. Emerald attacked with quick downward thrusts, using the sloping shape of her revolvers to maximize their cutting power. Ren attacked from the opposite side, deflecting blows and delivering strikes from below with quick uppercuts. Neither fired bullets, an unspoken vow between them to keep it physical, brutal. With another clash, Ren and Emerald jumped backward, creating distance. Before she attacked again, Ren noticed her facial expression. Her lip drew up in a lopsided snarl, teeth clenched.

Emerald's strikes came faster than before, her quick jabs and slashes working his blades steadily higher. He didn't dare retaliate with gunfire for fear of loosening his grip on his pistols for even a second. _This situation is getting desperate, I need to find a way out as fast as possible._

Ren suddenly dropped his balance, coming in with a double-bladed thrust from below, aiming to score a strike up either of Emerald's legs or at least stave off her attack. His fleeting sense of triumph was cut off when Emerald dropped her blades in a cross. The tips of her bladed revolvers embedded into the arena floor, stopping Ren's strike while trapping Stormflower underneath. Either way, Emerald's flurry of blows had stopped. Her double-downward cross had blocked his uppercuts, but left her unable to counterattack. Ren prepared to jump backward, the playing field evened.

Or so he thought.

Emerald leaned back, and before he could react, she launched her foot upward, above their crossed blades. He was unprepared for such a strike, and took the full force of her kick with his chin. Had his aura not been active, the blow would've surely snapped his neck. As it were, the force of the kick took him off his feet, he landed some distance away on his back, stunned. The crowd of students gasped, whether in amazement or horror, he didn't know. Ren realized it a moment later when he heard a clattering noise on either side of him.

The kick has dislodged Stormflower from his hands, each pistol was now far to either side of him, out of his reach. Shaking his hands to dispel the shock, he adjusted his stance to a close-combat one, fingers outstretched. He rushed forward again, no less confident in his ability to hold his own.

If Yang's unarmed combat was brutal, fiery, and dangerous, Ren's style was liquid poison. His unarmed strikes were aimed at vital areas, he targeted Emerald's elbows, wrists, knees, and other joints and pressure points with a combination of sharp jabs, chops, and pointed kicks. He struck not to defeat her in one blow, but to wear her down little by little.

Emerald sliced at him with her blades, forcing him to get creative with his dodging. Luckily, she didn't extend the blades fully by switching them to their chained kusarigama form, even though doing so would've given her a distinct advantage in range. Ren understood. It wasn't about winning, it was about the fight itself, the physical feeling of your weapon colliding with an opponent.

Even so, Ren punished her choice with a spinning kick that knocked one of the revolvers from her hand. He continued the motion, capitalizing on his momentum to jump into the air. Completing a second spin, he kicked at her other hand, catching the blade of her weapon. While she didn't let go, his kick had the effect of knocking her guard open. Pivoting to a ready stance, Ren swung his hands in an upwards arc toward her face, intent on delivering a two-handed chop.

Putting all her weight behind her, Emerald blocked the swing with her left forearm, barely stopping his chopping motion from connecting with her cheek. Ren smiled in triumph, latching onto her arm with both hands, restraining her weapon. She reacted just as quickly, dropping the revolver from her captured hand into her free one, which was already moving forward to catch it.

Ren's foot caught it first, his kick sending the weapon flying. Emerald's fist continued regardless, smashing into his face, her sharp knuckles leaving imprints on his cheek as he reeled. Both of them now disarmed, the advantage clearly belonged to him, and Emerald knew it. She chuckled lightly as they got into a ready stance one more time.

"It's been fun," she panted, "might as well finish it going all-out."

"I wouldn't have it any other way."

The ran at each other, drawing back to strike. Their fists passed each other as Ren slid low, dashing forward to deliver an uppercut to her solar plexus. Perhaps anticipating his movement, Emerald's fist came at his face in a hooking motion. Ren's vision went black as their fists connected with their targets.

"That's enough!" He heard Professor Goodwitch shout from his vantage point on the floor. He lay there panting, the ceiling of the arena blurring back into focus. "Both contestant's auras have been reduced to the red zone. The match is over."

As he got to his feet, the Professor's footsteps came close to him. "That was a good match," she commented, handing him his pistols. He took them gladly, sheathing the blades. "From Miss Sustrai, maybe, but I certainly didn't expect to see so much ferocity from you, Mr. Lie Ren." He decided to take her ambiguous words as a compliment, nodding his thanks. "Go get yourself put back together, there will be one more match today."

Ren slouched to the locker rooms, his energy gone. His shoulders slumped, heart still pounding from the exertion of the fight. The door clicked shut behind him as Emerald followed him in, likewise panting. She made her way to the nearest bench, sitting in a hunched position, looking just as tired as Ren felt.

Sensing her apprehension, Ren decided to thank her and make his exit. "I haven't fought like that in awhile, I'm sorry if I got a little. . . excited," he said, already approaching the door.

"I have that effect on people," she said back weakly, still catching her breath. Although he didn't look back, he could hear the wink in her voice. He smiled as he left, silently grateful that he had, at least a little, helped her get back into a good mood.

They didn't sit together during the final fight of the class period, but when Ren looked over at her, he could tell she was resting a little bit easier, leaning back against the bleachers as she enjoyed spectating the match. Ren smiled again, not letting the implications of her burn marks ruin the mood.

 _If making people happy through fighting is what happens, then it's worth it._


	13. Chapter 13

**Welcome back! Thanks to all who read, review, follow, and favorite. I hope you enjoy this latest chapter; I had a great time writing it! Things will be slowly picking up from here on out, so look forward to the future of this story.**

* * *

During dinner, Ren's scroll buzzed with a notification. Pausing mid-bite, he checked on his teammates to make sure he wouldn't be interrupting any ongoing conversations. As luck would have it, Nora had just launched into an elaborate explanation about the differences between dust explosions, categorizing each by dust type and overall beauty; she wouldn't be finishing any time soon. Jaune and Ruby listened with rapt fascination, while Pyrrha and Yang looked on with something more akin to fond amusement.

Ren pulled his scroll into his hand and slid it open with one smooth motion. Thinking to simply check the sender of the message and then ignore it for the remainder of dinner, he did a double take when he saw the address line. The message was from Emerald, and marked one of the very rare occasions in which she had contacted him first. True to her style, her message was burdened with grammatical errors, forcing Ren to reread it twice before feeling confident enough to assume he had understood the message.

 _REn, im going to be in the kktichen of the internationsla building tonight to relax. do ;you want to hoin?_

She sent a follow up message a moment later, correcting only a few of her mistakes. Ren couldn't be sure if she was too lazy to fix all of it, or if she didn't realize there were other mistakes, but he suspected the latter. He composed a response quickly, not wanting to appear rude in front of his teammates. Of course they wouldn't mind, but manners were manners.

 _Emerald, thanks for the invite. I'll show up in about forty-five minutes, if that works with you. Since you're you, I'm just going to assume you haven't eaten; I'll make some food once we're there._

He slid his scroll shut and pocketed it without waiting for a response. The kitchen in the international student dorm was, unsurprisingly, a little bit nicer than the ones in the local dorms, a fact which Ren had found out in the first few weeks of his stay at Beacon. He had made a short round of each dorm building, checking the status of each of the kitchens to find the one most suitable for mass-producing pancakes. Thankfully, Emerald didn't eat nearly as much as his hammer-wielding teammate; a decadent kitchen wouldn't be necessary for any kind of meal. As it was, he was glad to have an opportunity to cook in the international dorm kitchens, as the low lighting and the incredible view made for a very unique experience.

As dinner wrapped up, Ren offered to bring his team's plates away, coming back with a look of purpose. "What're your plans?" Nora asked him upon his return.

"I got a text from Emerald, she invited me to go cook for her at the international dorms. Well," he corrected, noticing Nora's confused expression, "I'm just assuming she hasn't eaten, so I'll probably get roped into it anyway."

"The fastest way to a girl's heart is through her stomach, you'd better watch out!" Nora winked at him, playfully punching him in the shoulder.

"I think that might just be you."

Nora laughed heartily, placing her hands behind her head. "Just be careful not to get caught making out," she teased. "You remember what happened to Coco and Velvet."

Ren shuddered. Coco and Velvet had begun dating recently, and often could be seen together, walking hand in hand. They never got more physical than that, at least, not where the public could see them. One night, they had been engaging in some _extracurricular_ activities in one of the lounges and were walked in on by Professor Goodwitch. Coco and Velvet had been caught in the act, their hands all the way up each other's shirts. Immediately saddled with detention, they then were forced to sit in embarrassed silence while Professor Goodwitch gave them a lecture on public decency. "What happens behind closed doors is none of my business," she had said, "but what happens in the very public student lounges of Beacon is another matter entirely!"

Ren and Nora had been walking by at the time and were there to witness the fallout. They left before anyone could see them, content to cut their exploration of the halls short. They never did mention the incident to either Coco or Velvet in the interest of keeping their privacy intact, but they did make the occasional joke about it to one another. As it was, their situation was a very persuasive argument against overzealous public displays of affection.

"I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Ren promised, making ready to leave. "A lecture from Professor Goodwitch is probably one of the only things I truly fear." After bidding farewell to his teammates and team RWBY, Ren left the cafeteria and struck out for the international dorms.

The sun had set minutes earlier, painting the red trees in various shades of melancholy black. He appreciated the sight for a moment before continuing his walk, the deepening shadows dampening the hustle and bustle of the day. The twilight breeze began blowing gently like clockwork, rustling through the air with whispers. Were it not for his calm demeanor and extensive experience being out in the wilderness at night, Ren might've feared it. Instead, he felt at peace with the dark, his muscles relaxing.

The international dorm was on the opposite side of campus from the regular ones, and was usually reserved for high-ranking guests and other distinguished individuals. Probably to make a better impression on these types, the dorm was one of the nicer buildings on the academy campus, boasting elegant stone craftsmanship and a rich mixture of mahogany and other hardwoods. The windows were each tall enough to reach the ceiling, and past the fifth floor, they extended to the base of the walls as well. It was on the top floor that Ren would be joining Emerald in the kitchen.

Placing his scroll against the door panel to gain access, Ren called the elevator, pressing the button for the seventh floor. After a brief wait, he emerged with a sullen expression. "Even the elevators are better here," he muttered to himself, amused at his own petty attitude. Not that he generally used the elevator in his own dorm, but still. It was a matter of principle.

The seventh floor was as quiet as could be, most of the students in their rooms for the night, either studying or using the extra time they had to go to sleep early. The kitchen displayed the same sense of muted quiet as Ren closed the door behind him, casting a cursory look around the room before shutting the room off from the rest of the world with a grateful sigh. The door clicked behind him. It felt good to be alone.

Well, not completely alone. A stir on the couch caught his attention, Emerald's head popped up over the back, her eyes finding his. She stared at him for a moment before greeting him with a lazy hand wave. "Hey."

"Hello," he responded, shrugging his backpack from his shoulders and placing it on one of the stools that sat next to the kitchen's island counter. "I forgot that this room has a couch."

Emerald yawned, her jaw popping. "Yep, one of the comfy leather ones, no less." She ran her hand over the material. "Incredible stuff."

"You want food, right?"

"Are you making some?"

Ren chuckled at her hopeful expression. "Yes, how do pancakes sound?"

"Breakfast for dinner? You won't catch me complaining, that's for sure."

"Oh don't worry, I expect you'll at least complain a little. I _am_ going to make you help." He looked at her as he said the words, expecting some kind of sarcastic retort. Instead, Emerald offered no resistance.

"Sure," she said quietly. "Be good to do something with my hands."

"Then come on over, I'll have you mix a couple things for me." Ren visited the fridge and a couple cabinets as Emerald picked herself up from the couch, placing an armful of ingredients on the counter as she sat down on the opposite side of the island. A mixing bowl and a whisk soon followed, neatly arranged in straight lines. Nora would generally talk nonstop while he whipped ingredients together, so he usually got away with placing a mixing bowl in her arms and letting her stir the ingredients. He wasn't actually sure she even noticed.

Emerald sayed quiet in contrast while he opened the bags of flour and sugar, pouring the correct amounts into the bowl without the need of measuring cups. Years of baking tended to sharpen the senses in regards to measurements. After adding the initial ingredients, Ren handed the bowl over to Emerald. "Do you mind stirring this?"

"Yeah, no problem." In truth, Ren didn't feel as if he needed the help, and he would've been quite content to do all the work himself. However, he wanted to ask Emerald about her neck and bring up some slightly sensitive topics, and he figured that if she were focused on doing something else while she talked it might be easier for her. He turned away and opened the fridge again, grabbing some ingredients with which he planned to make a syrup glaze.

"Is there something on your mind?" he asked gently. The fridge door shut, the gentle click plunging the room into total silence. Then, after the pause, Emerald resumed her stirring.

"Not really," she responded.

"I was just surprised that you invited me here so suddenly," Ren explained as he turned on the overhead kitchen lights. The darkness faded as they glowed to life, a small spot of light in against the otherwise twilight world outside the window. "Not to imply that you're an inconvenience, of course," he added when a response was not forthcoming.

"Is it a crime for me to want to spend time with you?"

"Of course not, I'm actually flattered. But I'm worried that - ah well, nevermind. How's the stirring going?" he diverted. _I jumped the gun there, she's not as comfortable as she could be._ There was no sense in rushing her, they had the whole night to talk.

"It's good now. . . I think?" she answered, placing the bowl on the counter again and tipping it so Ren could see. The ingredients were finely mixed, the batter a golden color, without any lumps of flour. That she had evidently put so much effort into stirring well both pleased and concerned him. On one hand, the pancakes would be extra smooth; he wouldn't even need to correct her stirring or ask her to do more. But, the way she had ardently worked the ingredients reminded him of somebody who was stressed to the point of wanting to do things to perfection. "On second thought, let me stir this a bit more, I think I see a couple lumps."

Ren let her, even though the batter very obviously didn't need more stirring. _Better to keep her hands busy until she calms down._ He wasn't sure if what she was experiencing could be considered a panic attack, but from what he knew, awkward silences wouldn't help the situation.

"I used to make pancakes with my mother," Ren said suddenly as he began putting away the flour and sugar. "She always let me taste the batter, even though it probably isn't that good for you." Emerald looked up from her stirring with wide eyes, her motions slowing. "I grew up in a small village in Anima called Kuroyuri, east of Mistral. We didn't have much, but I was fortunate enough to grow up with a roof over my head and both parents. My father was a hunter, but not the Grimm fighting kind. Although," Ren paused, fondly recalling the memory, "he was a crackshot with his bow, and he did take down a couple Beowolves in his time. That was. . ." he paused, looking out the window into the night sky. "That was a long time ago," Ren finished quietly.

"Your village, it. . . didn't last, did it?" Emerald asked sadly. She had stopped stirring the batter and had placed it on the counter so she could listen without distractions.

"No, it didn't," Ren answered quietly. "Like most small villages, my hometown was often attacked by Grimm. The townspeople were able to repel the initial attacks and over the years, they grew more and more confident in the defenses. Because of Kuroyuri's good track record, more and more people came to the village. And with larger numbers of people comes more negativity. The town kept repelling the Grimm attacks even as they became more numerous until eventually, it wasn't able to."

Ren sighed, using the time it took to grab a flat pancake pan to choose his next words. "After that, I only had Nora to rely on. You know, it's pretty ironic, Nora grew up on the streets so she had to scrounge and steal to survive. If it weren't for her experience, we wouldn't have survived out in the wilderness."

"You ended up leaving the village?" Emerald asked in surprise as Ren gestured for the bowl of batter. She pushed it over to him.

"Hmm? Yeah, there wasn't much left after. . . Well anyway, Nora and I made our way to Mistral after that. It took us quite a while, we ended up village hopping for some time, doing nearly anything to find food and shelter. Eventually, we were found and taken in by a blacksmith in Mistral. He kept us fed and clothed, gave us a place to stay. Taught Nora how to use the hammer so well that she ended up helping him out quite a bit on the forge. From there, we entered into the huntsmen academy, and you can probably figure out the rest."

"Why did you end up coming here, then? I grew up in Mistral myself, what made you want to leave?"

Ren lit the burner of the stove and stared into it pensively. "I think it was just a little too close to home," he finally said, covering his view of the flames with the iron pan. "That, and both Nora and I have always wanted to travel the world. Why stay in Mistral when we could do the same thing in a foreign country? Luckily, becoming a Huntsman is not based on location."

Emerald thought about his words while he poured some of the batter into the pan, watching the mixture sizzle and spread slowly from the center. "I didn't really have a travel bone in my body before I got picked up by Cinder. I was too focused on getting enough money to serve for my basic necessities. By the time she found me, I was ready to drop. I had gone for days without sleep, doing my best just to survive. Say what you will about the Mistral underworld, but their cops are just as shady. You can buy them for practically nothing."

"That's what happened to you then?" Ren asked, flipping the pancake adeptly.

"Yep. I had gone into a jewelry store with the intent to nab something small that I could get away with. The owner was this greasy old geezer, not too happy about my appearance in his shop. I mean, sure I was going to steal something, but he didn't have to be such an asshole!" she threw her hands up in frustration. "Anyway, to get revenge I goaded him into giving me a ring for free, the best one in the store. In front of his wife no less!" She chuckled, reliving the moment once more. "You should've seen the look on her face, she was so pissed! He started making apologies to her, but she wouldn't have any of it! And while they were busy fighting, I slipped out."

"Wait," Ren said, holding up a hand in confusion to stop her. "You convinced him to give you the best ring in the shop? For free? Didn't you say this guy was an asshole? How did you manage that?"

"Eh, does it matter?" she shrugged, taking a breath to continue. Ren's expression betrayed the fact that _yes, it matters very much,_ but Emerald started talking again before he could ask for clarification. "Anyway, he called the cops on me. Go figure. Spent the next hour running, but he must've paid them a hefty sum 'cause they didn't let up. Ironically, when I cornered myself in an alley, they lost me."

"And your teammate - Cinder - found you after that?"

"Yep, and long story short, we came here," she finished with a shrug.

Ren frowned, turning away from her to mask his expression while flipping another pancake over. Emerald had left a huge amount of information out of her explanation. _Long story short, huh?_ The story that took place between her meeting Cinder and her getting to Beacon was actually the most important part. Ren glanced over his shoulder. _And from her facial expression, she knows it too. As much as she just said, that didn't really explain anything to me. I already knew she was a thief. . ._ He removed a pancake from the pan, replacing the empty spot with a quick spray of liquid butter and more pancake batter. _What are the dynamics between her and her team? That's what I want to know._

"Hey, Emerald, how is your neck holding up?" She looked up at him with startled eyes.

"My what?"

"You know, from where you burned it with your curling iron?" Ren explained, reminding her of the excuse she had used. At his words, her shoulders slackened.

"It's getting better. Nasty burn, it'll take some time to heal," she said, absentmindedly rubbing her throat.

"I'm surprised your aura didn't protect you," he said offhandedly, returning to his pan. Another pancake was flipped onto the ever-increasing pile next to the stove. Looking at her in the reflection of the chrome fridge, Ren watched as Emerald sighed dejectedly.

"I didn't have it up at the time. I messed up."

"What do you mean?"

"I. . . didn't follow directions. She told me how to do it, but I wanted to do my own thing."

"Ah," Ren nodded, beginning to understand. "It was your first time curling your hair, so you got instructions?" Emerald slumped even more in her chair, propping her elbows on the counter and resting her chin in her hands.

"Yeah," she said through gritted teeth. "Don't listen, get burned. Should've figured that one out by now. Fuck me, right?"

"Well hey, don't sound so dejected over it," Ren turned to place the stack of pancakes between them on the counter. A small bowl of glaze followed a second later. "And if you ever need help, I think I could be the right person for the job. All you need to do is ask."

"I'm not sure how you could help," she scoffed, taking a pancake and ripping into it. Her eyes didn't match the smile she had plastered on her mouth.

"I've curled hair before, and I'd be happy to help you with yours." Ren grabbed a pancake for himself and took a moment to spread a light layer of glaze over the top with a butter knife. "And if all else fails, there are other ways to curl hair. Why insist on getting burned if you can remove the source of heat?"

Emerald bit viciously into her pancake, not meeting his eyes.


	14. Chapter 14

**Whaaaaat - an update? That's right folks, I'm finally gonna finish this thing, nearly nine months later! (Seriously, sorry about that.) As it is, this once happy story is getting more serious - perhaps I'm just bad at fluff? Who knows. . .**

 **Anyway, this will be finished in the next 6 chapters or so, so thank you for your patience! As always, thanks to all who read, review, follow, and favorite! Love ya.**

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The day of the Beacon Academy Dance was heralded by bells, a lovely tune echoing throughout campus as classes came to an end. With the Vytal Festival drawing near, the dance symbolized the last bit of peace between the kingdoms before the students would be thrown into a metaphorical war, pitted against one another in armed combat to bring glory to their respective academies. Bringing glory to Beacon was one of the last things on Ren's mind.

Ren stretched, muscles and joints straining as he stood from a two-hour lecture about Professor Port's fantastic exploits. None had better concentration and mental fortitude than he, but even Ren's focus was tested every time Professor Port began rambling. Mimicking the actions of many of his classmates, he pulled his scroll from his pocket and flicked it open, checking for any messages. When none were displayed, he flipped the scroll in his hand and pocketed it in a smooth motion, leaving the room.

Emerald had been quiet since their last talk, seemingly uncomfortable with. . . _something._ While he hadn't told anybody, Ren had been hoping to see Emerald again before the dance, with the intention of asking her to accompany him. As of late though, she had been taciturn; she spent most of her recent time slinking around with her teammates, each of which served to put Ren on edge. Mercury irked him, his general attitude crass and unbearable, while Cinder filled him with a sense of dread, she reminded him of the beautiful crime bosses that often appeared in fiction titles, misleading the protagonist and eventually killing their families. That, and with the implications that she was holding Emerald close against her will, Ren had decided that he disliked her.

Emerald's third teammate was a woman he had only seen once, but the girl had given him a grin that resembled a slasher smile a little _too_ closely - he made a mental note to keep his distance and avoid running into her alone, if at all possible.

As it was, he had been unable to speak with Emerald, and therefore walked back to the JNPR dorm alone. The dance held much less meaning to him since Emerald wouldn't be with him, but he intended to go anyway if only to support the rest of his team. He met the rest of JNPR in the dorm, Jaune and Pyrrha poured over homework side by side, while Nora napped.

"Hello Ren, how was the lecture?" Pyrrha looked up from her work.

He responded with a short chuckle, "I'll just say that Professor Port has an incredibly lung capacity." His statement earned a nod of agreement from Jaune.

"Pyrrha and I were just going over some homework before we get ready for the dance." He trailed off, looking Ren up and down. "Umm, are you going with us? Because if you were going with Emerald, none of us would mind."

Ren sighed, shaking his head. "I haven't been able to talk to her recently," he admitted. "With any luck I can find her on the dance floor - provided she shows up at all."

"I'm sure she will," Pyrrha consoled him, but it was more the cheerfulness with which she said the words that the actual content that made him smile back.

"Either way, we've earned an evening off. I'm looking forward to it."

* * *

At Jaune's suggestion team JNPR made a fashionably late entrance to the ballroom, arriving roughly fifteen minutes after it started. While fifteen minutes didn't strike Ren as 'late,' he made no comment and instead worked on the 'fashionable' part, hoping his team would turn a few heads. They were greeted by Yang and her radiant smile as they entered, and once they passed by, they were greeted by the magnificence of the usually drab ballroom.

The entire area shone with gold lighting, which reflected from banners and ribbons hung carefully around the ceiling and pillars. Students milled about in all their finery, some dancing in the center of the floor while others stood near the periphery, speaking animatedly to those close by. Ren smiled as he gazed about; while he had faith in RWBY's decorating abilities, he hadn't expected an atmosphere _this_ pleasant.

With a few parting words Jaune and Pyrrha left to dance, while Nora bounced over to Weiss and Ruby, who both stood at the edge of the room sipping from wine glasses. Ren gave the dancers a quick once-over, Emerald didn't appear to be present. He followed Nora over to Weiss and Ruby, arriving just as Ruby began answering Nora's question.

"- I dunno, I'm not really much of a dancy person I guess," she said, punctuating her words with a wobble. Obviously not used to wearing heels, she had chosen a pair that elevated her at least two inches. Ren cringed internally at the mistake, with any luck Ruby would be able to dance barefeet without being caught by one of the chaperoning professors.

"Hello Ren," Weiss inclined her head to him, "you like nice."

"You as well, the white compliments your style," he responded easily, earning a nod from her.

"Did you come here alone?" Ruby chimed in, eager to remove herself from being the centerpoint of the conversation.

"Well, I suppose if you don't count the rest of my team, then yes." Ruby nodded animatedly.

"That's the same for all of us too. Well not for Blake, but you get the picture."

"Right." As Nora mentioned something about Yang spiking one of the punch bowls, Ren was distracted by the entrance of two figures into the hall.

Mercury walked in first. He wore a standard tuxedo, one of the ones that could easily be rented from any of the tux shops in the Vale proper. _Cheap and boring, much like him,_ Ren couldn't stop himself from appraising. Emerald followed in after, wearing the same forest green dress she had worn to their dinner earlier. While her clothing looked excellent, it was out of place when compared with her expression; she glanced timidly around the hall as if hoping not to draw attention to herself, the usual smirk on her face gone.

Mercury strode ahead, walking into the throng of dancers. _Probably to steal someone's partner,_ Ren mused. When Emerald stopped short of the dancers, Ren decided to take his chance.

"Excuse me," he intoned to his makeshift group.

"Go get her!" Nora called after him.

When Emerald noticed his approach a flash of panic crossed her face, before it was replaced by a look of. . . relief? "I was wondering when you were going to show up," she chided.

"I've been here the whole time," Ren pointed out, walking further to the edge of the room. Emerald followed him without prompting. "How have you been recently? I haven't seen you much," he asked, his tone coming out more guarded than he had intended. A flash of guilt crossed Emerald's face.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, her voice nearly lost in the ambient noise, "there's been a lot going on recently."

Although he knew she was being serious, likely hinting at something to do with her team, he laughed to dispel the tension. "And here I was worried I'd angered you."

She laughed back, a small amount of tension easing from her features. "You _would_ worry. Not your fault though. Sorry."

"So you came here alone? Or did you come with Mercury?"

She immediately whirled, slapping him on the shoulder. "Never mind, I revoke my apology!" The dancers on the floor drew her attention as the song changed. "You were planning to ask me, weren't you?"

"I was, but that hardly matters now. I'm here, you're here. We'd might as well have come together anyway."

"Good point," Emerald agreed.

"Since you're not here with anyone, would you like to dance?" Ren extended his hand in invitation.

Emerald looked at the other dancers for a moment before letting out a sharp bark of laughter. "Please, do I look like a dancer?"

"There's not much to it," Ren countered, "and besides, it's my job to lead. If I lead well, you should feel like you're doing well." Emerald sighed but didn't contest, placing her hand in his.

Ren didn't go far, leading them to the edge of the floor. Dancing on the fringes would give them more privacy, and he figured Emerald wouldn't be too keen on being the center of attention. As the song changed he placed a hand on her waist, waiting for her hand to meet his shoulder before he started swaying slowly, eliminating the need for any footwork. _Better to start slow, half the fun in dancing is the conversation that comes with it._

Emerald began the dance with her arm muscles tense, firmly holding onto him until she eventually relaxed, settling into the rhythm. After a full minute, Ren began adding small steps into the routing, slowly turning them in place - Emerald had no trouble keeping up.

"Do you have any special plans for the Vytal Festival?" Ren specifically avoided mentioning the rest of her team, instead focusing wholly on her. Even so, Emerald bit her lip before responding.

"Nothing special I guess," she shrugged, "It's just another overhyped school tournament."

"You don't seem especially excited."

"I don't have anything to prove. I don't base my worth on my ability to beat up _children_."

"What about capable Hunters in training?"

"Capable? Look around, Ren." At her direction they both looked to the side, eyes passing over the other dancers. "They're dancing and smiling and laughing. While I may envy their ability to enjoy the smaller stuff, can you say they look especially prepared?" She shook her head bitterly, looking at Ren once again. "I could pickpocket half of them right now if I wanted, say nothing of a stealthy attack with a poisoned blade or something. Their guard is down, and they're unsuspecting; they've got a _long_ way to come before they're ready for the real world."

"And you're more ready?" Ren asked, the words not a challenge but a clarification.

Emerald nodded. "More than most. I've seen what's out there. To a certain extent, I'm sure you have too. Kids are idealistic, it's easy to find the will to fight when you place all your fears into something scary."

"But the Grimm are just a scapegoat," Ren finished, seeing where she was going.

"Exactly. The Grimm are a convenient enemy for Hunters to focus on. The real monsters are people."

"You don't take pride in defeating these students because you don't see them as worthy opponents," Ren concluded. "So are you saying that you can win the tournament?"

"Of course not," Emerald disagreed matter-of-factly. "I can't win one-on-one against a lot of them, but I'm not stupid. Huntsmen and Huntresses grow up with the idea that all their battles are head-on, simple. That's what they're prepared for. But who ever said the world was a place that allowed only fair fights? Most of these kids - hell - most of the actual _Huntsmen_ are unprepared for a stab in the back."

"To be fair, that's the point of backstabbing," Ren joked. "But I think I see what you mean. A tournament is set up so every fight is on at least somewhat fair and equal ground." He looked again at the dancers around them, their steps having taken them into the center of the dance floor. "So you're at a disadvantage because you're being forced to fight fair?"

"Yeah, but that's not really my point."

"You mean, this tournament itself is a bad setup for learning to fight because the students are focused on the wrong thing."

"Exactly," Emerald nodded, but without a smile. "This type of fighting is idealized for Grimm, but no matter how talented they might be, they're weak." She shook her head, sighing. "What good is the world's strongest organization of defense if it can be destroyed from within? The Huntsman of Remnant are like glass chess pieces - beautiful and decadent, but one internal fracture can reduce them to crystalline dust."

"What a metaphor," Ren pulled them into a swooping spin, leaning Emerald back before righting her and pulling her close. "I'm impressed."

"Shut up." She made little effort to hide the rosy tint on her cheeks, but it disappeared shortly after.

"To be honest, I'm actually surprised you came here tonight," he added as an aside as the song began winding down. "As you said earlier, you don't consider yourself to be much of a dancer."

Emerald sighed, a dour expression appearing on her face. "My team made me come. I wasn't actually going to, at least, not at first."

"They _made_ you come?"

Emerald looked up in alarm at his words, quickly stepping away from him. He let his arms fall as she backed away. Her eyes shone with what he could only place as regret. "I'm sorry, Ren. I have to go." And with those words, she disappeared into the crowd of dancers.

Ren returned to the edge of the ballroom, watching as the dancers still on the floor finished the song out, separating amicably as the tunes faded into silence. The music was replaced moments later by a new song and the dancing continued, as it would throughout the night.

Ren allowed the time time to pass as he stayed seated, watching his various classmates enjoy the festivities. Well, Ruby looked out of place, but he supposed that just came with the territory; she had never been an overly social person. Even watching his friends did little to lighten his mood, though he made sure his darker feelings didn't show themselves on his face. At one point Nora came by and made small talk, leaving her glass of punch when she left to dance with an Atlas student. Ren finished the drink for her as he watched.

As the crowds parted, the Beacon midnight bell tolled, echoing across campus, the peals reverberating throughout the ballroom. Through a small part in the crowd that lasted only a second, a flash of forest green caught Ren's attention. Emerald was dancing with a silver-haired man, and even though Ren didn't see his face, he knew it was none other than Mercury.

As natural as it was for teammates to dance with each other, he couldn't stop the jealousy that twisted in his stomach. Halfway through the song he saw the pair again, only this time they were interrupted by a tall woman in a sparkling jet black dress. He hardly recognized Cinder without her regular crimson attire, but his lips twisted into a grimace even in the face of her elegance. _Beautiful and dangerous._

Cinder tapped Emerald on the shoulder and, after saying a few words to her, took her place as Mercury's dance partner. The pair faded into the crowd, leaving Emerald behind alone, eyes wide. Ren stood on a whim with the intention to fill the now vacant spot as her partner, but she turned suddenly and rushed through the crowd; right before she vanished he saw her wipe her face on her arm, as if she were in tears.

Try as he might, Ren couldn't locate her. For all intents and purposes, the thief had simply vanished, leaving her mark on the dance floor and his heart before mysteriously disappearing. He sighed in defeat, this time slouching back into his chair. His attempt to console himself by finishing Nora's glass of punch did little to help.

Looking around the dance floor now, all the laughter and smiling only served to irritate him. He recognized how immature and stupid his jealousy was, but he began making his way to the exit anyway, intent on leaving. _There's no point in my being here if I'm just going to drag the others' mood down. I'll make myself scarce so they can enjoy themselves._

With this thought in mind, Ren left the ballroom, passing Professor Goodwitch on the way out. Rather than saying anything, she simply nodded, for which he was grateful. His exit wasn't actually that strange, seeing as how it was already a quarter past midnight, though the ball would continue until sunrise.

Ren had only made it a little ways across the courtyard when he heard a sniffle off to his left. After a moment he placed the sound as crying, quiet as it was. The sound came from around the corner of the stone dining hall, an area that would normally be empty at this time of night. Familiar with the romantic drama surrounding dances, he figured it was merely a badly-timed breakup, but he'd be remiss if he didn't check to make sure everything was alright. He padded around the corner of the building, bringing him to an area that was completely closed off from campus by a thick line of trees. The windows of the ballroom glowed yellow a short distance away, the opaque glass hiding the occupants from view.

"Hello?" he called out, consciously making his footsteps louder on the stone walkway to prevent the crying person to be scared. "Is everything alright?" He stopped in the middle of the walkway, confused. The sound had appeared to have come from the wall directly to his side, but there was nobody there. The blank wall didn't give any answers as he studied it. Ren's hand trailed down his thigh to reach Stormflower, but he stopped short once he realized he was in a tux and had left his weapons back in his dorm.

"If there's somebody here, please say something. I just want to make sure you're alright."

"Ren?" the voice came from the wall again, this time with another sniffle. Without warning, Emerald's form flickered into view, appearing out of nowhere.

"I- Emerald?" Ren gasped, dumbstruck. "Where were you? How did you just- are you crying?"

Sure enough, dark mascara trails lined her face, extending from the corners of her eyes down her cheeks. Her red eyes were puffy, and her lips were drawn back as she clenched her jaw. Before he could react she had stepped forward and buried her face into his chest.

"Emerald, are you okay?" he asked, already knowing the answer. "What happened?"

She gasped a few more times before answering. "I fucked up," she choked out. "I didn't want to do it, but I wasn't strong enough."

"Emerald, can you tell me what happened?" Ren tried to keep his voice calm as he wrapped her in his arms tightly. "Even just a little, are you hurt?"

"No," she whispered, "I'm fine. I just-" her voice stopped short as she broke into tears again, quieter this time.

"Is this about Cinder?" he asked, prodding delicately. "You don't have to answer, just nod your head if yes. I promise I won't tell anyone." When no response came, he hugged her tighter to his chest. "Please Emerald, I want to help. Please, tell me if you can."

Ren's tux jacket shifted as she nodded her head once, up and then down. _Yes._

His lips twisted into a snarl. "Did she hurt you?"

She shook her head from side to side this time. _No._

"Okay," he breathed out a sigh of relief, "okay, that's good. I'm really happy to hear that."

Without giving any word of warning, Emerald's hands snaked their way around his neck. Or at least, _one_ of them did, the other grabbed the top of his tie, her hand balling around the fabric by his throat. He was pulled forcefully downward as she lifted her head, and the last thing Ren saw was her red eyes before their mouths collided into a kiss.

Her face was wet, Ren noticed, and her lips tasted more like saltwater than anything. Unsure of what to do he held his position, giving Emerald full control as her hand went up to the back of his head, pulling him deeper into the kiss. She was panting when she finally broke away, holding her arms close to her chest.

"I'm. . . sorry."

". . . No, don't be," he replied, trying to hide his racing heart. "Are you okay?" he asked again. It looked like she had stopped crying; if her goal had been to shock herself out of the tears by kissing him, it seemed to have worked.

"I can't go back," she said instead, looking away. "Not to them, not to _her."_ She paced a few steps before turning back to him. "I can't go back," she repeated.

"Then come with me," Ren said, answering the unspoken question. "It's Friday night and the weekend is ahead of us, nobody will notice if we're gone. We'll. . . we'll rent a hotel in Vale and hole up there."

"I don't have mone-"

"Doesn't matter," Ren interrupted, taking her hand. "Come with me, let me help you, just this once."

"I trust you Ren," was all Emerald said in reply as he led them away from the ballroom, away from the campus, and away from Cinder.

"I won't misplace that trust, I promise."


	15. Chapter 15

**A shorter chapter this time; a tense interlude for dialogue and character development, with a "did they didn't they" fade to black at the end. Nothing incredibly flashy, but I hope you all enjoy it regardless! The next chapter promises to be much more dynamic.**

 **Thanks to everyone who reads, reviews, follows, and favorites!**

* * *

At her behest, Ren checked himself and Emerald into a hotel in the heart of Vale's most crowded district, using different names to prevent anybody with less than honorable intent from following. When the receptionist raised a questioning glance he brushed her off by stating that that the two of them were recently wed, eager as he was to get Emerald away from the public eye.

After they reached the room he pulled out his scroll to notify his teammates of his whereabouts. The message he sent was short, he merely told them that something had come up and that he'd be gone for the weekend and apologized for not offering a more thorough explanation. From the response it sounded like they understood; at least Pyrrha did, while Jaune went along with her. Nora's reply suggested Ren had run away with Emerald for salacious purposes, but Ren didn't bother correcting the misinterpretation.

By the time he lowered his scroll Emerald's tears had long stopped, her fists balled in anger and her teeth bared. She shook visibly, but it wasn't sadness or fear that made her tremble - it was rage. Each muscle stood out against her skin, clearly defined as she clenched her fists with enough strength to break the skin on her palms with her fingernails.

"Emerald?" Ren asked quietly, unsure of whether or not he should interrupt. "Do you want to tell me what's going on?" His muscles froze when she turned to him, stopping him short with a baleful gaze.

"I'm _weak,_ " she growled, lips, pulling back into a snarl. "I could've stopped them so many times, I had so many chances."

Rather than disagree and possibly get into an argument, Ren thought it would be wiser to try to gather information. Speaking softly in what he hoped would be a diplomatic voice, he asked, "I'll admit I don't really understand what's going on. Do you mind explaining a little?"

Emerald stood and began pacing around, glaring in front of her as if she were stalking something with the intent of sinking her blades into its flesh and robbing it of life.

"If you tell me more, maybe I can help," Ren added.

"I'm _not_ a damsel in distress!" she suddenly snapped, coming to a stop in front of him. Her hand snaked out and grabbed the front of his shirt, pulling him close, and Ren closed his eyes as she raised her other hand, fingers curling into a fist. "I don't need a knight in shining armor to come swoop me off my feet!"

"I'm sorry," Ren apologized, opening his eyes and meeting hers, "I didn't mean to try and take that role. There's just. . . a lot I don't understand about this situation."

Emerald's eyes widened for a short moment and she released him with a growl. "It's not your fault." Ren breathed out a sigh of relief, only to gasp a second later as Emerald turned and slammed her fist into the solid oak wall with a yell. "God Damnit!"

Ren barely stopped himself from rushing to her aid - he had definitely heard at least one bone snap from the impact. Emerald shook her hand absentmindedly, ignoring the pain.

"I know this isn't your fault, you're just trying to help." She sat down on the bed again, massaging her temples with her fingertips. She hopped up a moment later, striding to the bathroom. "I'm going to shower, I feel disgusting, and I sure as hell don't feel like sitting still." She continued talking from within the bathroom, "If you want to keep talking then come in. Or don't, I don't care."

At first he contented himself with sitting still, but the need for answers drove him to his feet. _There's more at stake here than mere modesty. If she wants to talk, then I want to listen - the sooner the better._

Ren followed her in, pulling the hotel chair with him and placing it so it faced away from the shower, making himself comfortable. He pulled his hair out of its ponytail, letting the locks settle over the back of the chair. "Sorry to intrude."

"Don't be," Emerald called from the shower. "You want answers, right?"

"If you don't mind."

"Then I'll start with a question. What do you think of my teammates?"

Ren mulled it over before answering. "They're worse people than you. Not to imply that you're a bad person-"

"I am."

"-but while you do the things you do to survive, I'd place their motives as more. . . malevolent?" He shrugged, unsure if she could see the motion. "I get the feeling that they're actively out to cause harm."

Emerald let out a single bark of laughter, the sound fading as it echoed from the marble walls. "Nail, head. We're all shitty people, but those three are much _much_ worse than anything I could be."

Ren nodded his head, his stomach sinking as his fears were confirmed. "And what happened tonight involved whatever it is they're doing?"

"Yeah. Something that I could've stopped." She took a deep breath before continuing. "I was alone on the streets until Cinder took me in, stealing what I could just so I could survive. LIfe was pretty tough until I was cornered by her in an alley. Since the day she's taken me in, I've owed her for saving my life. If you want to understand why I've done some of the things I've done, there it is. There's your reason."

"Because you owe her, you obey her?" Ren confirmed. "That wasn't meant as a criticism by the way, I just want to clarify."

"That's right."

"So if you're rebelling like this. . . that must mean what Cinder has planned is bad enough to make even you reconsider?"

Emerald laughed bitterly. "Remember when I said that this world isn't made for fair fights? That the Huntsmen Academies are unprepared to be stabbed in the back?" She shook her head, water droplets splattering the shower walls.

"Oh, I see."

"This is bigger, _worse_ than what anyone can see coming," Emerald went on, "Whatever they think, the Headmasters of the academies are not prepared to go against her!" Her anger was slowly returning as she spoke, her words occasionally punctuated by her slamming the wall with a palm.

"But what about the Atlesian Military?" Ren asked. They have hundreds of soldiers on campus, and three dreadnaught-class warships. Surely they-"

"Not after tonight," Emerald interrupted quietly. "The Atlas Military is as arrogant as it is powerful. They believe that their large force is a deterrent on its own - they're just as unprepared as anybody."

The spray of water on the walls of the shower stopped as Emerald turned the knob, the sound replaced by dripping. Ren heard the door slide open as she exited, beginning to towel off.

"Thanks for helping get away tonight, Ren," she said from behind.

"When you say 'tonight' do you mean you're planning on going back?"

She sighed heavily, "As grateful as I am for your help, it was convenient for me to run away. It's not enough just to leave. I'm the one who's responsible for allowing things to get this bad."

"Emerald, what kind of plans does she have? Can you please tell me what's going to happen next?" He could hear her shaking her head before she answered.

"I can't tell you much - I'm not getting anyone else involved. I allowed this to continue, so I'll be the one to stop it." Ren's fingers curled on the arms of the chair.

"You don't have to do this alone."

"This is my fault as much as anybody else's. I need to try to stop this on my own."

"But-"

Emerald cut him off before he could continue. "Ren, I appreciate what you're trying to do. But while I still can, I want to try to stop this myself - I want to take responsibility. I'm not saying I don't want your help. But let me try by myself first before that."

Ren stood, turning to face her, ignoring the fact that she only wore a towel. Concern bled heavily into his voice, which he did his best to keep calm. "Emerald, you of all people know how dangerous she is! I saw what she did to your arm, how do you know that won't happen again?"

"I don't! But I won't just allow that to happen anymore, I'm more prepared now!" After seeing Ren's look of defeat and worry she quietly added, "I don't even think I'll be able to convince her to stop anyway. Not really." She reached out a hand and placed it on his shoulder. "But if everything goes to hell, I at least want to be able to say I _tried._ I've never done anything like that before."

Ren sighed as he sat back down, allowing Emerald to finish drying herself off. "I'm sure you know already," he began, "but the last thing I want to do is be controlling. I don't want it to seem like I'm trying to steal your autonomy. I'm just worried about you. To say the least, you're in a very dangerous position, but I hope you know that I've got your back."

"I do," Emerald responded, and one of her hands came to rest on his head. "But don't forget that I've survived up till now. I'm more capable than your average schoolgirl."

"You've beaten me in a few fights," Ren laughed, "I'm well aware."

"Well," Emerald said, toweling off her hair, "whatever happens will happen later. I feel like I'm ready to pass out standing." When she finished she walked past him, exiting the bathroom. Ren followed her, returning his chair to the small desk while Emerald flopped onto the bed. With the hour reaching nearly two in the morning, his movements had lost their finer coordination; he clumsily pulled a pillow from the bed, barely catching the weird look Emerald gave him as he dropped it on the floor.

"What're you doing?"

"I'll sleep on the floor," he answered, kneeling to make himself comfortable.

"Don't be stupid," she scoffed, "there's plenty of room on the bed for both of us." She accompanied her words by patting the other half of the mattress. "See?"

Ren considered arguing for a second but decided against it. He was used to sleeping on less than comfortable surfaces from his childhood, but that didn't mean he _liked_ it. "Thanks."

After making himself comfortable on his side he darkened the bedside lamp, bringing the room to a monochrome; dark shadows accented by white patterns from the full moon.

"I don't mean to be insulting, but this is a very. . . sudden change," Ren commented, turning over to face her. "Up till now you've followed her, why are you stopping?"

"I'm not too sure myself." She stared at the ceiling deep in thought. "Maybe deep down I always knew I was guilty, I just tried to justify it by telling myself I owed her. Even now, I don't really think that's changed." She shifted to her side, piercing red eyes meeting his. "It's easy to forgive the little things that happen in the moment, but it wasn't until I looked back on what she's done with my help that I realize how horrible it is. It all adds up - maybe tonight was the straw that broke the camel's back."

She looked again at the ceiling before meeting his eyes again and continuing, "The students at Beacon may be unprepared and idealistic, but they don't deserve to live they way I lived. I actually admire that idealism sometimes."

She reached her hand out, tracing across Ren's cheek in a rare show of tenderness - though her eyes retained their hard quality. "And maybe the are even a few of them that I'd like to protect from whatever the future holds."

Where earlier her motions had been hasty and rushed, this time Emerald put deliberate slowness into her actions, shifting across the bed so her face was closer to his. She closed slowly, giving him time to answer the unspoken question - time to pull away - time to reject her and leave.

When he didn't, their lips met softly, eyes falling closed as they were embraced by the darkness. The shining moon was covered by a cloud, drawing a tenebrous curtain over their forms.


	16. Chapter 16

**Another chapter down - we're getting closer and closer to wrapping things up! This one ends on a cliffhanger as well; it was actually going to be longer but I decided not to force it. Writing this week has been pretty difficult, but I suppose like anything it has good and bad periods.**

 **Regardless, I hope you enjoy Chapter 16! Thanks to all who read, review, follow, and favorite!**

* * *

Emerald parted from Ren in the early morning light at the clifftops of the Beacon Academy. Having left the hotel before dawn, they silently watched Vale fade into the distance under them as they were brought back. The early light was soft and an uncharacteristically warm autumn breeze tossed their hair, Ren put his back into its ponytail.

The setting put Emerald on edge, for as comfortable she was at the moment, it was a mere veneer over the tension that underlied her return. _The calm before the storm._

"Emerald," Ren began, stopping in front of her. He took both her hands in his, meeting her eyes with the most serious expression she had ever seen him wear. "Please be careful. If you need help. . ."

Emerald gulped, the reality of the situation growing heavier on her shoulders. "I'll ask, if it comes to that." Then the breath left her lungs as she was crushed in a hug. While she usually hated physical contact like that, she found herself leaning into him for a moment before she broke away. "I need to go," she said regretfully, backing away from him in the direction of the dorms. "Thanks Ren."

"Of course, Emerald. Good luck." After those words, she left him behind on the docks and ran, refusing to look back. Had she, she would've seen his anguished expression of worry, accompanied by a single tear that traced down his left cheek.

The long hallways of the International Dorms allowed her some precious time to sort out her thoughts, as she walked. Even at the slow pace she was going her breathing began to pick up and her heart rate increased. _I don't even know what I'm going to say! How do I tell her that I'm done? How do I tell her to stop what she's doing? Of all people, I know just how hard she's worked to get even this far, there's no way she'll listen to me!_

By the time she reached the door, she still hadn't come up with anything resembling a plan. She wasn't sure what to say, how to say it, and didn't even know if Cinder would bother hearing her out. She froze with her hand on the knob, unwilling to turn it and face what lay beyond. A new thought entered her mind, unbidden and entirely unwelcome.

 _What if I don't come back from this? Could this be where I die - what would giving my life prevent in the long run?_ She grit her teeth, growling under her breath. "Fuck this. I've never worried about saying the right thing. I'm just standing here, like a coward." She turned the knob and opened the door, her confidence not high, but she wouldn't allow herself to stand pitifully outside the door.

When she entered the dorm, she was greeted by the last thing she could've wanted to see. Mercury sat on the bed, grinning at her as she walked in. "Hey Em, back already? I thought you were gonna run away for good!"

"Shut the hell up," she growled, surveying the space. Cinder was nowhere in sight, but Neo was, strangely enough. She sat on Cinder's bed cross-legged, polishing the blade of her parasol. She looked up when Emerald noticed her, blinking. As she did, her eyes changed from dark green back to their signature brown and pink.

"Or did he break your heart?" Mercury continued, "did he use you and then leave you?"

Emerald whirled on him, barely resisting the urge to unsheathe her blades. "Mercury, I'm gonna take the chance to put a knife in your back one of these days. Maybe it'll make you a _real_ cripple this time."

He laughed at the threat, flopping onto the bed. "Wow, PMS is a bitch, huh?" He squawked when Neo's parasol hit him in the face.

"Thank you," Emerald turned to the girl, "Have you seen Cinder? I need to talk to her." Neo didn't respond, although when she blinked her brown and pink eyes switched colors.

"I don't know what that means," Emerald snapped, turning back to Mercury. "I'm in a hurry. Where's Cinder?"

"In one of the training rooms," he drawled. "You're such a tightass today." Emerald didn't grace him with a response as she was already on her way out. "Which is funny," Mercury called after her, "'cause I though you got laid last night!"

"Eat shit," she replied, slamming the door behind her.

After the door closed Neo blinked again, her eyes turning to a blood red, and the diminutive woman drew a line across her neck, laughing silently. Mercury joined in a second later.

* * *

Ren was not idle as Emerald left. Once she was out of sight he wiped the tear away with the back of his hand and sprung into action. In a dead sprint he ran toward the central tower of the academy, passing by students in a blur. Some stopped to watch him as he ran past, but he ignored them in favor of his goal.

He slowed his run once he made it inside, taking a sharp turn to the left until he faced a set of three elevators built into a large pillar. Only once was he inside did he stop to catch his breath, slamming his palm onto the button that corresponded with the highest floor.

The elevator ride was long, but thankfully there wasn't any music. Ren had trouble keeping still as the elevator ascended, itching to take action. He calmed himself with deep breaths until the elevator reached its apex, doors sliding open.

Ren stepped into Ozpin's office, the telltale sound of creaking gears and clock mechanisms greeting his ears. Behind his desk sat the headmaster himself, who swiveled in his chair once he heard Ren's arrival.

He stood cordially as Ren approached the desk, eyebrows raised questioningly. "Mister Ren, I do believe the pleasure of having you here is quite rare. What brings you?" He leaned down to fill his mug with coffee before taking a seat.

"Unfortunately, nothing good." Ozpin nodded to a seat, which Ren gratefully took.

"I see. Please continue." The man's voice took on a slightly tire quality, as if he'd heard it all and just wanted to have coffee before dealing with the day's bad news.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but did anything happen last night? Something along the lines of a security breach? During the hours of the dance, perhaps around midnight?"

Ozpin's eyes narrowed, he gripped his mug a little tighter before setting it down and interlocking his fingers. "I'll skip the deceptive wordplay, Mister Ren. How do you know about this?"

Ren shook his head, "I don't know any of the details, Professor. Other than what I heard."

"And who told you these details?"

"Forgive me, Professor, but I'd rather not say. However, I did learn some things that you need to hear."

"An investigation is already in order," Ozpin responded, his tone clipped and dismissive, "unless you know who the perpetrator was, I should think this conversation is waning. You don't seem to be the gossiping type, but if that's why you're here then I suggest you cease this line of conversation."

"That is why I'm here, actually!" Ren said, and seeing Ozpin's confusion, added, "I know who the perpetrator is. At least, I have some information."

Ozpin took renewed interest in the conversation, his dismissive air fading to be replaced by seriousness. "Please do go on."

"I'm sorry to say I don't have many specifics," Ren apologized, "all I can offer is what I know. Beacon Academy is in danger from a third party - they're the ones responsible for what happened during the dance."

Ozpin paused before responding, "Are you telling me this because you don't think the Atlas Military is capable of defending the kingdom?"

"I'm not sure about that, but I'm told they're unprepared for what's coming," Ren said sadly. Noting the look on Ozpin's face, he continued. "If this sounds strange, then it's because I'm doing a bad job of explaining myself. There's somebody on the enemy's 'side' - so to speak - that I've been talking with. It's from this person that I'm getting my information. I can assure you of its reliability. The group that was responsible for last night is planning something bigger.

Ozpin looked at him for what seemed like forever. "I'm inclined to believe you, especially considering your demeanor. You've never established yourself as anything other than earnest - that's why I'm taking this so seriously." The Headmaster leaned forward, his hands gripping his coffee mug tightly, knuckles white. "Mister Ren."

"Headmaster."

"Can you tell me who this person is, or gave you this information? If the General and I can get in contact with them, we could take immediate action."

Ren nodded. _Here comes the hardest part._ "Yes, both. But I have a condition, sir. Revealing the identity of one would reveal the other in turn; I can't do that unless I have your agreement on my condition."

Plain and simple, it was a risky bluff. Ren wouldn't endanger the students at Beacon Academy by staying silent, if it came to that he'd have to reveal Emerald's identity in the interest of safety. With any luck though, Ozpin would realize that playing 'nice cop' would make his job easier. Ren even considered saying this all out loud, but was interrupted by Ozpin.

"Mister Lie Ren, you may not be in the position to make demands," he stated, taking a drink from his coffee. His tone wasn't confrontational rather than matter-of-fact, giving Ren the confidence he needed to push on.

"I haven't provided evidence or reason for you to believe me," he began, standing and placing his palms on the headmaster's desk and leaning over it, "all I can offer is my intuition and my word, both of which have never let me down. There will be a disaster soon, more than what the Atlas Military is capable of dealing with. With your help, I think I- _we_ can mitigate it."

Ozpin set his mug down, his slight smile disappearing. He leaned back in his chair, but his posture did not speak of relaxation. "Very well, Mister Ren, let us hear your condition."

Ren breathed an imperceptible sigh of relief, pushing himself off from the desk. "The person I've been in contact with about this matter hasn't been entirely on the correct side of the law."

"It's your aim to make sure this person isn't punished then," Ozpin finished, his smile reappearing. "You understand that I can't make any promises, especially with General Ironwood involved in the security of the Vytal Festival." Ren opened his mouth to argue but was cut off as the headmaster continued, "but, I think I could make a convincing case for them, depending on how valuable the information we receive is and how well they cooperate."

Ren nodded. "Thank you, Professor Ozpin. A chance is all I ask." The headmaster chuckled, pouring himself a new cup of coffee.

"To be honest, you were one of the last students I expected to become involved with something like this. Miss Rose or Miss Xiao Long I could understand, giving their propensity for seeking trouble." He waved his hand, "And I've always had my eye on Miss Belladonna."

"I can't say I'm happy with the way the situation has evolved," Ren admitted. "I would've much preferred it if the trouble didn't exist."

"That's the world we live in," Ozpin replied, apologetic. "I'll assume this will be easier if you facilitate, so please contact me as soon as you can, Mister Ren, and I can meet this informant of yours. It would be to everyone's advantage if we could sort this out in a timely fashion."

"Of course." Ren took the hint and began walking toward one of the elevators lining the far wall, calling it. "Thank you again, professor," he added as he stepped in.

"With any luck, she'll be okay," Ozpin smiled from his desk as the elevator doors began to close.

"Wait, who said anything about a _she_?" Ren tried to say, but the metal doors closed in front of him before he could get an answer. The last thing he saw was Ozpin take a sip of coffee, smiling.

* * *

When Emerald entered the training arena, the first thing she noticed was how empty it was. Usually filled with students having lively discussion or the clash of weapons, the arena was devoid of sound, the air stood still like the calm before a storm. In the center stood Cinder, who turned around as Emerald walked in.

"Good morning, Emerald," Cinder greeted her, her face devoid of the usual smile. "How considerate of you to finally show up."

"Goodmorning Cinder," Emerald responded, trying to keep a neutral expression. Instead of continuing the conversation, Cinder bared her teeth.

"Do you think I haven't been watching? You've grown soft Emerald, and I've seen it happening from the beginning. Did you think I wouldn't notice the way you look at that boy?" Cinder shook her head, the side-to-side movement resembling a snake preparing to strike. "You let love get in the way of your quest for acceptance, power, and survival. I have given you all these things, why are you so eager to throw them away?"

Emerald could only step back at the sudden force in her words. "Cinder, what are you talking about? I only came here to talk!"

"Drop the pretenses," the woman hissed, "I'm not fond of wasting time, so speak your mind."

"I-" Emerald stammered, "I want you to stop this. All of this. We don't need to continue, it's not too late to stop! You can still call it quits. Let's just -" Emerald dropped her hands to her sides from where they'd risen during her plea " -stop. Let's stop. I'm tired of being the bad guys."

"How much did you tell the boy?"

"I didn't tell him anything. He doesn't know. I made sure we can still stop, but you have to drop your plans _right now._ "

"Aha. I'm glad to hear that. Do you know why I'm here, Emerald?" The sudden question stumped her. She rarely saw Cinder train - the woman much preferred to keep that part of her life private. Emerald had simply assumed she liked her privacy, or that she didn't want to be seen in her post-workout state. Nevertheless, she couldn't answer. Cinder didn't give her the chance anyway.

"I have a philosophy about conflict. Whether it's words or weapons, any conflict should have a corresponding stage, correct? A battle for custody over a child takes place in a court. A conflict over the law, a government office. Vocal competitions, on a stage. Chess, chessboards." She waved her hands outward in a grand motion as she spoke. "And traitors, do you know where they are dealt with?"

Emerald shook her head, mentally preparing to jump to the side if Cinder suddenly lashed out. More and more it seemed a fight was inevitable, and though she was having trouble processing just how fast the situation had escalated, her flight-or-fight instincts were beginning to kick in.

"Traitors meet their end on the battlefield." Cinder stalked forward her lips curling into a momentary smirk as Emerald stepped back to maintain the distance between them. "I'll give you one more chance. Stop this foolishness at once, child. You have no idea of what's at stake in this world. When I found you in the streets, I saw your potential. I knew you could be useful, that your life was worth so much more. But if you decide to stand against me, I will not show you that same mercy a second time."

"I know enough about the world - more than nearly everybody!" Emerald shouted, drawing her kukris and readying her stance. "I know all about your plans, I know about the power of the Maidens, and I know what you're going to do with the power you receive after you kill that woman. And I know that what you're doing is wrong."

Cinder laughed, brushing away her words. "Look at you, you and I are no different! You Became my slave simply because I offered you a place to stay at my side - you sold your soul for belonging! How can you possibly say that the crimes you've committed are no less wrong?"

"I may have sold my soul, but I did it for _survival,_ it was a necessity! You sold yours for power, and I can't think of anything lower than that!" Emerald punctuated her words by spitting on the floor, adrenaline coursing through her veins, giving her courage. "There's a world of difference between you and I!"

"Emerald, you should know by now the price of not following my orders," Cinder hissed, eyes narrowing as her hands were wreathed in gloves of dancing flames. "You have are nothing but a pet to me, and will never be anything more!"

At this her whole body began to glow with barely restrained light and the temperature of the room rose perceptibly. Emerald couldn't help but cough, the hot air searing her lungs. Cinder's eyes began glowing a molten gold as she drew on the ancient power of the maidens. A fiery glow emanated from her right eye, extending outward and trailing off behind her as she began walking forward.

"I'm ashamed," Cinder said, her voice steel, bringing with it the promise of blood. "I thought you were smarter than this. Had I known you were going to walk straight into your own death, I would've let thrown you to the dogs years ago. When you pass into hell, remember this, Emerald: _Pets that bite their masters are put down._ "


	17. Chapter 17

**Here, have an update! I'm expecting this story to end with chapter 21 or 22, but who knows for sure. Regardless, look forward to it!**

 **As always, thanks to everyone who reads, reviews, follows, and favorites!**

* * *

As Ren entered the elevator and his sight into Ozpin's office was cut off he heaved a sigh of relief. Simply keeping his breathing steady and heart rate normal had been a gargantuan task of willpower, one that he abandoned as soon as he was free to. Negotiating between friends and teammates was one thing; negotiating with Ozpin about a serious matter was another entirely. He leaned over and clutched his knees, surprised to find that even they were shaking.

The flood of relief was cut short by a single vibration from his pocket. He pulled his scroll out in a flash, the device open before the screen could illuminate. A message from Emerald displayed on its surface, her icon blinking rapidly, as if in distress.

 _Training arena b, if nesessary._

Ren mulled over the words. ' _If necessary' implies that she's okay, right?_ The message heightened his sense of unease. If Emerald sent a preemptive message, was he to wait for a follow-up message that confirmed her safety? Or did she want him close at hand in case something bad were to happen? _Or already happened,_ Ren's mind finished, the sentence unwelcome. With a growl he began running toward the training halls, each of which were a long distance across the campus.

When he made it to the second arena he burst in through the front doors, rushing down the hallway and past the lobby. Being the weekend the training hall was empty; no students hindered his mad dash.

He stopped just short of the doors that led to the training floor, leaning against the metal double doors and placing his ear on the crack between them. As soon as his skin touched the metal he recoiled. The smell of burning flesh permeated the air as he fell backwards holding his ear, gritting his teeth to keep from yelping in pain. The metal doors had been incredibly hot, as if heated from the inside by a blast furnace.

Ren regained his feet and approached the door a second time, taking care not to touch the metal as he brought his ear to it. No sound escaped from the room inside. Either Emerald and Cinder had moved to a different location, or something had happened to force a silence over the room. Judging by the hot doors, Ren guessed the latter.

In lieu of Stormflower he wrapped his sleeves around his hands, pressing on the hot metal. The doors creaked as they opened, metal sheets cracking and buckling, sending flakes sprinkling to the floor. The door didn't so much open as it buckled under the weight of his press, collapsing to the ground on the other side.

The arena was barely recognizable. A thin veneer of ash coated every surface, lending to the darkness. Chairs and bleacher benches were overturned, some half-melted. Most harrowing, however, was the enormous scorch mark that radiated from the center of the arena, a pitch black radius. Whatever had exploded in the center of the room had done so with enough force to crush the concrete below, leaving a crater from which cracks radiated. At the edge of the blast radius lay a shape, which moved as Ren entered the room, gasping in horror.

The shape stirred as he approached, each step kicking up small puffs of ash and dust. Looking closer, he could see the remnants of charred fabric lining the ground. The shape stirred again, and Ren couldn't hold back his gasp when he realized it was Emerald.

Covered in a layer of soot, she lay splayed out on the floor, barely clinging to consciousness. What little remained of her clothing was her pants, which had been dyed jet black. A black scorch mark covered her side and extended across her chest; the heat from whatever blast caused the destruction in the room had evidently seared through her aura and burned her severely.

Ren fell to his knees beside her, running a gentle palm over her cheeks, which the burn hadn't reached. "Emerald, can you hear me! Emerald!"

She stirred again, one red eye barely cracking open. When she saw him her eye opened farther and she attempted to sit up. She made it less than an inch from the ground before she fell back, exhaling a quivering breath. In the last moments before she fell unconscious, Ren saw her try to say something.

 _I'm sorry._

At a loss, Ren frantically scanned the room, searching for any immediate danger. Aside from the doors that he had knocked in to enter, the only noteworthy feature was a hole in the wall, looking like the entrance to a bullet wound. The edges of the hole were half-melted, bringing to mind an image of an object punching through the wall with tremendous force and heat.

His scroll already in hand, Ren's immediate move was to call the infirmary. While Beacon's in-school infirmary could handle most minor wounds, it wasn't equipped to deal with life-threatening injuries. Although Beacon was a combat school, the staff had taken great steps in making sure that the worst injuries sustained on campus were broken bones. With Emerald's condition as bad as it was, she would likely be transferred to a hospital in Vale without delay.

Before anyone could arrive, Ren took a moment to focus on his breathing. His heart was going wild; his sense for danger was in high alert. Deciding that Emerald's assailant had gone, he took a deep breath, forcing himself to hold it. _In for eight, out for eight._ For the first time in more than a year, he let his semblance cut into his aura. The effect was immediate. Like a cold wave, calm washed over him. His shoulders relaxed, the muscles in his face eased their tension. His heart slowed down to normal speed, and his breathing returned to normal. As much as he could, he sent his aura toward Emerald as well. If anything, her dreams would be peaceful ones.

A team of paramedics on scene in fewer than three minutes, entering through the doors that Ren had broken. Three of the four clustered around Emerald while a fourth approached Ren.

"Are you alright young man?" the medic asked in a gruff voice. "What happened here?"

"I wasn't here when. . . whatever happened here happened," Ren admitted, gesturing around the room. "I just knew she was in here so I came to meet her." It wasn't completely false, but he had left out a large portion of information. So as not to appear strange, he played up his fear by forcing himself to nearly hyperventilate, opening his eyes wide.

"It's going to be alright." The man placed a hand on his shoulder. "Can you help us identify the girl?"

"Yeah, her name is Em-" Ren immediately cut himself off. "Her name is Violet. Caval'Yurie Violet." If Cinder had tried to kill Emerald, then checking Emerald in to a hospital under her original name would be a grave mistake. With any luck, the alias would throw Cinder off their trail, were she to find out Emerald survived the burns.

"What is your relation to her? Can you help us get in contact with her parents?"

Ren shook his head, doing his best to look sad alongside the fear he was acting. The problem with his semblance was that it dampened all his emotions, drowning out negative and positive and replacing them both with a calm that allowed him to act in horrible situations. Unfortunately, it made acting "human" in times of crisis difficult. "No, no parents."

"Any family?"

"Just me I suppose," he replied. "Her partner." He left the term ambiguous, but the medic nodded his head in understanding.

"Alright, thank you. We'll get her to the Vale hospital, you're coming along, right?" Ren nodded his head vigorously. By this time the other medics had lifted Emerald onto a stretcher and were carrying her to the doors. Ren and the fourth medic followed in close steps.

The ride in the aerial ambulance was tense; Ren's aura ran out halfway through and he was left trembling, both in anger and fear. The medics assured him that she'd be fine since she was getting nearly immediate medical attention from the "best doctors in the kingdom," but the words did little to ease his anxiety. Eventually a nurse took pity on him and handed him a cup of water, which he gulped down gratefully. The cup was slowly torn to shreds between his fingers before they finally arrived.

Emerald was carted off ahead, while Ren was brought to an examination room to check for injuries, which he assured them he didn't have. Regardless, they insisted on poking and prodding until they verified that he was correct.

An hour later he was left alone for the first time, the doctors giving him a conference room to himself where he could relax - though he did very little actual relaxing. Dialing Ozpin he relayed what little information he had; that his contact was the one who was in the epicenter of the burned arena, and that she was a member of Cinder's group. He explained that she had likely been found out and that Cinder was responsible for the damage. Implicating Cinder would allow Ozpin to extrapolate Emerald's identity, but Ren moved ahead regardless; this was not the time for subtlety.

"I have a task for you Mr. Ren," the headmaster said, "and I'm afraid this one is non-negotiable."

"What is it?" Ren's voice was guarded, he didn't like the idea that he may have to leave the hospital.

"No matter what happens, I need you to keep your contact safe. She could very well be one of our only methods to stop the danger that has entered our school. I saw the damage that was done to the training arena, and it does not put me at ease. So, can you protect her?"

"That was my plan from the start."

"Excellent, thank you. I'll be looking into things at the academy in tandem with General Ironwood." He breathed a sigh which rattled through the speaker. "There's one more thing I need you to do for me, Mr. Ren. I'm not sure what your relationship with the informant is, so I'm unsure of what emotions you're experiencing. If you're angry, then I need you to make me a promise." He didn't wait for Ren to respond. "You must not go alone and seek revenge. Not only would you likely be killed, but it would also give away the advantages we have right now."

"Advantages?" Ren echoed incredulously. "Em- my informant nearly died, how could we possibly have an advantage?"

"I'll explain soon, but my order still stands. Do not under any circumstance go and seek revenge."

Ren breathed out a huff of air. "I won't. I promise. But will you tell me what's going on? I can tell that I'm being left in the dark and it's not something I find agreeable." His fatigue and worry was making his words abrasive but he couldn't muster the energy to care.

Ozpin paused before responding. "I have my suspicions about the nature of this manner, yes. But that's all I'll say on the matter currently. The moment your informant regains consciousness, tell me. I need to speak with her urgently."

"Fine, I'll be sure to," Ren promised with a flat voice, closing his scroll. He understood that Ozpin had suddenly been burdened with the fact that someone had been attacked and nearly killed in his school, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being used as a pawn. It wasn't even that that bothered him, he just didn't want to be a pawn left in the dark.

* * *

Emerald woke up that evening after six hours of surgery and four hours of medical aura supplement procedures. Ren was asleep when the doctor entered the conference room to give him the good news. As soon as the door opened he was on his feet, ready for the worst. Instead, he was pleasantly surprised to hear Emerald was awake and lucid, though still in pain.

He was led to her room, the doctor bidding him farewell before continuing down the hall. Ren opened the door without knocking.

Emerald lay limp on the bed, an IV in her left arm. The sheets covered her lower body, but her entire torso was covered in heavy bandaging. An oxygen tube crossed under her nose.

She snapped her fingers when he entered, the only sign that she was awake. As he approached the bed he couldn't help but cringe at her condition. Dark circles were visible under her eyes; she looked as though she'd been awake for more than seventy-two hours without rest.

When he leaned carefully on the edge of the bed to hover over her, she opened her eyes. "Hey," she breathed, huffing as though even forming words was an arduous task.

"You're alive." Ren let out a shuddering breath, the anxiety abating and being replaced with relief. He had trusted the medic's words that assured she'd be okay, but it was another thing to see her alive. He reached down and took her hand in his, smiling as her fingers closed around his palm.

"Somehow. I feel like I've been tossed through a cement mixer and then sucked through a jet engine, it hurts really bad."

"The burns?"

She chuckled, "Normally I'd say 'no shit, obviously,' but the burns don't actually hurt, other than the edges. I guess my nerves were fried in the blast, the doctors said my aura will take a couple months to repair them. My back and side are what hurt the most - that's where they took skin grafts from." She gestured toward her unburned side with her fingers. Ren's heart clenched as he once again took in the bandages covering every inch of her torso.

"I'm sorry, I should've been there."

"Don't be stupid, then we both would've died. I'm glad you weren't there."

"I guess it allowed me to get you to the hospital."

"That too, yeah. Also, let go of my hand, yours is really sweaty." A small mile curled her lips.

"Not a chance," Ren chuckled, "I thought you were dead, seeing you burned to a crisp was not something I'd do again."

"It ruined my clothing too. That top was expensive." Her smile grew wider, showing teeth. "Did you cop a feel while I was unconscious?"

"What's wrong with you, is nothing sacred?!" Ren gasped in mock anger. He turned over her hand and linked their fingers. "I was legitimately worried. I'm glad you're okay."

Emerald sobered. "Me too. I thought Cinder would be angry, but to think she'd go so far. I really was nothing but a pawn to her all along. I would've been angry before, but now I think it's a relief, actually. Just proof that I don't owe her anything." She sighed, gripping his hand tighter before slackening her fingers. "Well shit. Now what? Where do we go from here?"

"I prepared a fallback plan in case something like this happened," Ren said. Her eyes flickered open in surprise.

"You plan for everything, don't you? Well, let's hear it. I've got nothing."

"I was in contact with Professor Ozpin this morning; I informed him the basics of the situation."

"Did you tell him who I was?" Her voice wasn't accusatory, to Ren's relief. He shook his head.

"No, but he does know Cinder is behind the attack at the training arena. Although I checked you into the hospital under a different name, it won't take him long to find out your identity. If he doesn't already know," he added.

"Had things gone differently, I would've tried staying anonymous the whole time while helping to stop her," Emerald lamented. "I guess it can't be helped - I'd might as well meet him."

"He seemed willing to compromise," Ren said. "He mentioned that the more you cooperate the easier it will be to let you go free."

Emerald snorted. "I seriously doubt he could stop me from escaping if I really wanted to. But I'll cooperate." She opened her eyes and focused on Ren's. "Can you get him here? I need to talk to him about Cinder - and it's not something that can be done over scroll."

"Yeah, I'll get it taken care of," Ren promised, letting go of her hand. "Emerald, may I ask you something?"

"Shoot."

"Is there something more going on?" Emerald's eyebrows went up in confusion. "I mean, why are you so intent on speaking to Ozpin personally? Why the secrecy? How could such a small group of people be such a threat to Beacon?"

"I already told you that Cinder is too dangerous just to deal with easily. We have to take some very careful steps if we want to win."

"But I'm asking _why,_ " Ren clarified. "How is Cinder that dangerous? And more importantly, what does she want with Beacon? Can you tell me that much? I hate being left in the dark."

Emerald's expression was pained and she opened her mouth to speak, but closed it a second later. "I'm really sorry Ren. I am. But you have to believe me when I say that the fewer people know the full truth, the better. This is the kind of information that paints a target on your back for the rest of your life. I won't do that to you."

Ren's expression softened. "I want to make sure this isn't about you not trusting me."

Emerald shook her head. "Of course I trust you. Probably more than anybody. You trust me too, right? Trust me to make this decision for you."

"I do, and I will."

* * *

 **It's a lucky thing that Cinder isn't familiar with the concept of "double tap" eh? Emerald caught a lucky break!**

 **For those who read my other works, you'll recognize Caval'Yurie Violet as my go-to OC for when I need a random side character. This time she's just a regular student at Beacon whose name Ren uses as an alias for Emerald.**

 **I enjoy the irony of a thief and a ninja saying they trust each other, so it might happen more. Maybe it's their way of saying "I love you?" Who knows?**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hello again everyone, It's your waiter Lauren(ce), serving up a hot plate of Chapter 18! This is the last chapter of downtime in this story, so from here on out get ready for breakneck pacing and some even more breakneck-y fights. _Crack._**

 **Thanks to all who read, review, follow, and favorite!**

* * *

A light knock on the door to the hospital room was the only warning Ren and Emerald had before Ozpin turned the handle, letting himself in. The door closed quietly behind him with a click as he turned to greet Emerald. She managed to get the first words in in the form of a jab. "What's the point in knocking if you're just going to come in?" Ozpin merely laughed.

"You must be Emerald Sustrai. I'm glad to see you're recovering."

Emerald and Ren had spent the night in the hospital room, occasionally being bothered by nurses and the like as they did their rounds. Thanks to the aura supplements and the regrowth of her own overnight, Emerald's burn wounds were healing at a rate which surprised everyone. By the time she went to sleep the pain had faded, and now she was able to sit up with little trouble, wincing only slightly during the process.

"That's me," Emerald confirmed. "I'll skip the 'how did you know my name' bit and cut to the chase. I have information you want."

Ozpin sighed, taking a seat in one of the guest chairs. His dark green clothing blended with the colors, giving his figure a nebulous property. "You do indeed, Miss Sustrai. I'm sure Mister Lie Ren here has already told you of what happened when he visited my office on your behalf?"

Emerald raised an eyebrow at Ren, puzzled. "I. . . no, he didn't. All he said was that he contacted you."

"Well, that's the basic idea. In short, he bargained for your freedom by offering the information you have. A deal of sorts, the terms of which were simple: if you cooperate, I do my best to clear your name." Emerald looked at Ren in surprise, eyes wide. "Given the circumstances," Ozpin continued, "I found his terms agreeable. So I pass the question on to you, Miss Sustrai. Provided that you give me all the information you have on Cinder Fall, I'll do my utmost to keep you from the reaches of the law. I can't make guarantees where General Ironwood is concerned, but perhaps he doesn't need to know how close _exactly_ you were to Cinder." He finished speaking with a smile. "I'd be interested to hear your thoughts."

Emerald sat still on the bed, mouth agape. When she finally closed her jaw, her teeth snapped shut. Ren gave her a nod of reassurance when she looked his way. "I accept. Thank you for agreeing to help, Headmaster."

"I should be the one thanking you." Ozpin stood suddenly, pacing the length of the room to the window. "Now that that's out of the way, let's begin planning. Well, I suppose there's one more order of business to attend to." He turned back to them, eyes meeting Emerald's and Ren's in turn. "What are your favorite fairy tales?"

"I'm not sure I follow," Ren replied with a frown. "How is this relevant?"

Ozpin waved away the question, "You could write it off as mere curiosity. It helps me better understand the people I'm talking to."

"The Tale of the Four Maidens." Emerald shrugged when Ren looked at her, surprised that she'd humor Ozpin so easily. "What? The Fall Maiden was always my hero growing up."

"The Story of the Seasons?" Ozpin corrected, his tone pained. "But all the same, an. . . interesting choice." His eyes lingered on Emerald a moment longer. Ren could've sworn he had shared a hidden conversation with Emerald just then, but then Ozpin's eyes moved to him and he had to come up with an answer.

"I suppose The Fisherman's Enchanted Net," Ren answered, selecting one at random. Choosing a favorite story had never occurred to him. "But I'm not married to that answer."

Ozpin nodded. "Well, sorry for that detour of topic." He returned to his chair, resting his elbows on the arms and steepling his fingers. "Mister, Ren. I mentioned yesterday to you that we have an advantage." Ren nodded. "Allow me to explain. What we have right now is a battle of information. Cinder Fall is our adversary, along with the two other students with her, correct?"

"Mercury Black and Neo. . . Neo." Emerald confirmed. "They're both assassins. Even though they're not as loyal to Cinder, they're still incredibly dangerous."

"I'll ask about their loyalties later," Ozpin said, writing a memo in his scroll. "As I said, we have advantages. The first is that Cinder doesn't know you're alive, Miss Sustrai. I can only assume she meant to kill you, which means she thinks her information is safe."

"But she could easily find out I'm still alive, right?" Emerald asked. "Wouldn't that information be released to the public?"

Ozpin smiled, "Thanks to Ren's quick thinking, that's not the case. He checked you in under a different name, which means 'Emerald Sustrai' doesn't exist in this hospital. Or _any_ hospital for that matter." He chuckled lowly. "And I called in a favor to the Vale Coroner's office and had them register your name in their files. Technically, Miss Sustrai, you died in that conflagration."

"You faked my death? I _know_ that's illegal."

"For the greater good, of course. But as it stands you don't exist, which means that Cinder won't be expecting us to make a move. And if my hunch about Cinder's plans is correct, she won't be making a move until the Vytal Festival, correct?"

"Right, she's relying on the White Fang and other factors to cause mass panic and attract the Grimm."

"Other factors? Can you elaborate?"

Emerald's expression became clouded. "I'd. . . prefer not to."

"Please, the more you can tell me, the more I can do to help you."

She looked at Ren before she replied. "Promise you won't hate me."

"I promise," Ren replied without hesitation. "The fact that you're here makes you a different person from back then. You're doing everything you can to save lives. I could never hate you for that."

Ozpin watched their exchange with a raised eyebrow, but he was ignored until Emerald turned her head to face him. She took a deep breath. "The festival is where I would come in. My semblance allows me to create illusions in the mind of any single target. Do you know a girl named Penny?"

"The exchange student from Atlas?" Ozpin scratched his chin. "Yes, isn't she quite close to the General?"

"I -ughh." Emerald had buried her head in her hands. "The plan was to make Penny and the Nikos girl fight. With the help of my illusions the match would go horribly wrong, leaving Nikos looking like a murderer, while Penny would be exposed as an android, making the general public lose faith in Atlas."

"And then Cinder would use that commotion to summon the Grimm," Ozpin finished. "I had my suspicions about Miss Polendina, this will be an. . . interesting talking point with the General."

"Penny is an android?" Ren asked, head spinning. He'd noticed she was odd ever since they met, but he hadn't pegged her for anything out of the ordinary.

"More like a metal shell for a real aura," Emerald confirmed. "As far as we know, she does have a soul."

"She and Ruby always did seem to get along well. But putting that aside, why is Atlas building humanlike androids?"

Ozpin shifted in his seat, looking through the window. "I can assure you that the General doesn't intend to start a war, if that's what you're worried about."

That just left him with more questions. Did Ozpin know what was going on? How much information were he and Emerald communicating under his nose?

"Perhaps. . ." Ren began as Emerald and Ozpin turned to him. "Perhaps I should leave. It may be easier for the two of you to plan things out without me here." He made to stand up but was pulled back to his seat by Emerald.

"Nonsense," Ozpin said, "anything sensitive that needs to be discussed can be discussed later. It's about time we began formulating a plan as it is." He waited for Ren to get comfortable again before continuing. "We need to find a way to lure Cinder away from the student base. Stopping her will be nearly impossible as long as she has the potential to take hostages. And with the powers she has, anything less than a large-scale ambush will prove ineffective." Ozpin took a moment to groan, pressing his fingertips into his temples. "We have an advantage of information, but the moment we do anything, that will disappear. I'm afraid killing her is also out of the question."

Emerald and Ren nodded in turn.

"Miss Sustrai. Does Cinder know where _it_ is?"

"Not that I know of," she replied. "But it's only a matter of time, especially considering the new information she has. The night of the dance, Cinder managed to upload a virus into the CCT."

"So that's how she was going to force Penny and Pyrrha to fight." Ren gripped the sheets tightly, teeth clenching. "I can't say how happy I am that we're avoiding this." Emerald squeezed his hand.

"Even so, I wish we could come up with something to get her alone. All this planning is useless unless we can get her away."

"Why don't you text her?"

"What?" Emerald blurted out as Ozpin looked his way in confusion.

"That would destroy our advantage," Ozpin pointed out with a frown. Ren shook his head.

"Not necessarily. What if you make it sound like you were apologetic and desperate for her to take you back? That wouldn't be too far fetched, would it?"

Emerald grimaced, rubbing her arms. "That. . . could work. If anything it would guarantee she comes out to finish me off, and she can't do that if she's around students."

"Even if she brings her two teammates, this plan is the best we have so far," Ozpin acknowledged. The chair creaked as his weight left it. "I'll get in touch with the General and inform him of the situation. Do you have a scroll, Miss Sustrai?" She nodded. "Good, I'll be in touch with both of you as time passes. Keep your heads low, and don't return to school."

"We're too closely affiliated?" Ren guessed.

"Cinder may know who you are, so we'll just keep you here too. That way you can protect Emerald should something happen."

"Understood. May I at least tell my teammates where I am?"

Ozpin scratched his chin as he opened the door. "I'm sorry Lie Ren, but no. You can tell them whatever you need to convince them, but do not let them know where you are or what the situation is. We can't risk anything getting out."

He sighed but nodded in acceptance. "Got it." Without another word, Ozpin left, the door swinging shut moments later. Once again Ren and Emerald were alone in the hospital room.

Ren allowed himself to go limp, falling onto the bed next to Emerald. Emerald likewise made herself more comfortable, but at a much more careful pace.

"I didn't know you had bargained for me," she said quietly. "I was ready to take the fall. It would be what I deserve."

Ren didn't respond at first, staring into the ceiling. The past day was catching up to him, his muscles felt weak and he lacked the will to move. He blew out a tired breath before responding. "Just because someone does something wrong doesn't mean we should give up on them."

Emerald chuckled wryly, "I don't think quotes like that cover attempted sabotage of an entire kingdom." The sarcastic mirth left her voice, replaced by a whisper. "That'd be far too convenient."

"I don't see why it can't. The past is the past. Even if you were part of it, there's no reason why you can't actively work to fix it. I think real weakness would be if you ran away and left others to clean up the mess. But you're right in the thick of it with us. The only way you could be more admirable is if-"

"-If I never did it in the first place," she interjected. "But I did, so I guess we're here."

"I guess so. So let's work hard to make things right."

"Yeah. I'll keep working. I'll do better. Maybe someday, better will be good enough."

"It will be. I promise." Ren sat up, looking at her. "How are you feeling? And I don't mean just the burn, how are you doing with all. . ." he gestured around at the empty room, "this?"

"I'm. . . okay. I think. This is all happening so fast, I'm not sure if it's suddenly going to hit me all at once." She shrugged. "Maybe it's a gradual thing."

"And how about the burns?"

Emerald turned over so she was facing him, leaning on her uninjured side. "They're getting better. Wanna see?"

At Emerald's request, Ren examined her wounds. The doctors would rebandage her side soon, but until then she had been instructed to give her side fresh air. Not unlike the aftermath of a deep tattoo, her injured side was a mixture of fresh skin and black burn marks. Dried blood gathered under the skin grafts, pink flesh barely visible below the mesh. Ren winced when he saw it, gently lowering her robe back.

"How does it look? Don't worry," she laughed, "you can say it looks ugly."

"It. . . looks painful. I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She turned to rest on her back. "The doctors say it's healing really well but even so, it's going to leave some nasty scars. There's only so much that aura can do to heal."

"I don't know what to say other than I'm sorry. I can't imagine how tough that is."

Emerald shrugged as she responded, "I deserve it, and I think that makes it easier to deal with, ironically. These marks will be a constant reminder of my past, and I think that's only right. Besides," she added with a smirk, "It's not like they'll be visible most times. I can dress in a way that hides them easily."

"Do you want to?"

"I don't. I'll wear my sins with pride, to prove that even the worst of us can change."

"For somebody without formal education, you say some really poetic things. I'm going to thank my own influence for that," Ren joked. Emerald laughed, not disagreeing.

"Thanks for being here though," she added. "It would suck to be alone right now."

The two continued talking for some time. Ren had expected Emerald to be more unhappy about the scars her burns would inevitably leave, but she was much more concerned about the state of Beacon and doing everything she could to stop Cinder. When a doctor came in and rebandaged her side, Ren cleared them to go on a small walk around the interior courtyard. In Ren's experience there was nothing worse than being stuck inside a hospital, and even though it was Emerald's first time as a patient inside one, there was only so much she could do in her room until boredom would strike, closely followed by depression.

The two shared words in the courtyard as they lounged alone under the trees.

"It's all going to go fast from here," Emerald began. "There won't be time for breaks after this."

"Crisis rarely gives you a chance to catch your breath. The two of us probably know that better than anyone."

Emerald huffed in response. "But who needs breaks anyway? Huntsmen and Huntresses are supposed to protect the world - we can't afford to stop even for a minute. Arggh, I'm going crazy cooped up here!"

" _We_?" Ren asked. "Are you considering becoming a Huntress when this is all over?"

"Might as well," Emerald shrugged. "I'm pretty good at what I do, it seems like a logical next step. That is, if it's decided that I can."

"You know, you won't be able to steal if you become a Huntress."

"Says who?" Emerald glanced at him playfully. "Maybe I'll be like one of those heroes in the story books. Steal from the rich, give to the poor? That's right up my alley!"

"'Emerald Sustrai: Folk hero, Huntress, Unapologetic Thief.' I can see it already."

"And her ninja sidekick," she added with a smile.

"And her ninja sidekick," Ren echoed. "Wait, _sidekick_? I think I deserve an equal share of the fame!"

Emerald laughed loudly, scaring away some nearby pigeons, and Ren decided then and there that if the opportunity arose, he'd be more than happy to fight by her side for the rest of his days.


	19. Chapter 19

**Hello everyone! New chapter, and only about two more to go (plus an epilogue). Thanks to all who read, review, follow, and favorite!**

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The air had grown colder in the past months. Ren crouched behind a thorny bush, breathing into his hands to keep himself from shivering. Next to him crouched General Ironwood. Even close to the ground, Ironwood's massive figure dwarfed Ren, but it was the man's stillness that drew his attention. Stony-faced, the general held absolutely still, not even his breathing visible. His posture spoke of years of high-intensity military training.

Emerald had spent one final day in the hospital to recover, the doctors begrudgingly releasing her on joint orders from Ozpin and Ironwood. She rested on her knees in the clearing ahead, the centerpiece to a wide open flat in the Forever Fall Forest. To any outsider, she appeared to be completely alone - which is what Ironwood's plan had counted on.

With the idea of luring Cinder away from school and other students, Emerald had followed the general's orders and sent a message to Cinder, begging for forgiveness. She lied and said she was incredibly injured, and needed medical attention. Ozpin had expressed doubts about the plan's effectiveness, but deferred to Emerald's judgment: If Cinder knew she was alive, she would have to take steps to kill her to prevent information from leaking.

To that end Emerald rested alone in the clearing, with Ren and Ironwood behind a thorny patch of bushes some distance away. Professor Goodwitch observed the scene from a tree on the opposite side of the clearing, while Ozpin was nowhere to be seen. Two of Ironwood's airships waited in a separate clearing for his signal, at which they would fly over and drop a group of Atlesian Knights into the area.

Having seen the aftermath of Cinder's powers, Ren couldn't help but be nervous using Emerald as bait. One wrong move could spell disaster for not only her, but also their chances of stopping Cinder in a clean fight. He nearly jumped in surprise when Ironwood placed a heavy hand on his shoulder. "Relax Ren, we have an advantage here. I trust Ozpin and Glynda with my life, there's no better pair to have fighting at our side."

Ren nodded in lieu of an answer, turning back to watch Emerald. Still the early morning the air was still and quiet, heightening every sound made by the wind in the trees and the birds.

The calm was violently shattered by the snap of a twig far off to the left, accompanied by the sound of footsteps in the leaves and the sound of something heavy being dragged across the ground. Ren and Ironwood went dead quiet, straining to see through the forest.

The dragging sound continued to grow louder until the branches at the edge of the clearing rustled, before finally being pushed aside with violent force.

Mercury Black emerged from the forest, walking into the clearing with cautious steps. In one hand he held the collar of a girl, dragging her unconscious form through the dirt. The girl's Beacon uniform was tarnished, stained with grass and dirt and ripped in multiple places. Mercury unceremoniously dropped her the rest of the way to the ground where she landed face-up.

Ironwood drew in a hiss of breath as the girl's face was revealed, while Ren clapped a hand over his mouth. The girl was a faunus, as evidenced by the two tusks that came from her upper jaw and extended down her jawline, though one of them was broken off. Her mouth was taped shut, and her neck was a patchwork of blue and purple bruising in the unmistakable shape of handprints. Her chest rose with her breathing, short and labored.

Mercury took notice of Emerald, who kneeled in the dirt, but didn't address her when he spoke. Instead he looked around the surrounding forest, eyes wandering over the trees and rocks, searching for movement. "I know this is an ambush, that's why I brought a hostage. Come out now, and I won't hurt the girl!"

"Mercury," Emerald panted, squinting. "You have to help me, where's Cinder? I made a mistake, I need her to take me back! Please!" She continued begging, dropping forward to rest on her forearms. "Please."

Mercury ignored her entirely, placing a boot on the unconscious girl's knee. "Fine then, but the only ones you can blame is yourselves!" A gunshot echoed throughout the clearing, accompanied by a sickening crack as the girl's knee shattered.

In the bushes, Ren bit his hand roughly to keep himself from getting sick on the spot. Ironwood's visage remained stony. As the sound faded Mercury did a slow spin, eyebrows widening as nothing happened.

"Mercury, I'm alone!" Emerald cried out. "Take me to Cinder, I'm going to die if she doesn't help me."

Mercury blew out a low breath as he looked at Emerald. "Seriously Emerald, this is a pathetic excuse for an ambush even for you. You're better than this." He turned and addressed the surrounding area once more. "If you don't come out in five seconds I'm going to kill her! Five!"

He moved so he was standing over the girl. "Four!" Lifting his foot, he pushed her head to the side, resting his boot on the side of her head. "Three!"

"Mercury, stop!" Emerald begged, crawling forward.

"Stay where you are! Two!"

Ren screwed his eyes shut, holding his breath.

"ONE!"

The gunshot sounded, and Ironwood's hand clamped over Ren's shoulder in a vicegrip. Silence returned to the clearing, making Mercury's breathing stand out in contrast.

"Holy shit!" he yelled, and Ren opened his eyes again to see what was going on, purposefully avoiding looking at the corpse. Mercury swiped aside some branches at the edge of the clearing, revealing nothing behind them. "Who's there!" He scrambled over to a large rock, breathing heavy. Checking behind it, he stumbled back into the clearing. "Is there really nobody here?!"

"No, it's just me Mercury!" Emerald yelled. "Please don't kill me! I need to see Cinder!"

Mercury sat down hard in the dirt, panting. "I thought for sure there'd be a fight. Oh man." He stood a moment later, leaning on his knees. "Ah. Well, I suppose that just makes my job easier then." He began walking toward Emerald, feet making little puffs of dirt. "Holy shit, I didn't realize how bad Cinder messed you up. Your face is all destroyed, I'm surprised you can even see."

"I can't," Emerald responded, slowly standing up. Mercury didn't react, even when she began slowly backing away.

"Well, guess that means you won't get to see me kill you." Mercury stopped in front of where Emerald had been kneeling, looking down at the dirt.

Ren emerged from behind the bushes, stepping gingerly into the clearing. Emerald continued backing away, each step taking her closer to the edge of the clearing.

"It's nothing personal," Mercury continued, addressing nothing. Ren crept closer, now within fifteen feet of him. "You know how it is in the underworld. Business is business. Hey, why did you suddenly go quiet?"

Stormflower was raised in Ren's hands, waiting at the ready. Emerald stopped backing away, giving him a slight nod.

"No last words? Then I'm gonna- Oh wait, shit!" Realizing the ruse, Mercury tried to jump back but was too late to block a burst of bullets from connecting with his face. Suddenly aware of Ren, he barely managed to block two slashes, but took a kick in the chest which launched him back.

The clearing burst into a frenzy of activity. Ironwood dove out from behind his bush, drawing his pistol and firing a salvo of shots to follow up Ren's attack. The corpse of the Beacon girl shimmered as it leapt to its feet, whipping a parasol out of thin air and stopping the general's bullets in their tracks. When her body stopped sparkling a diminutive girl was left in its place, her hair and clothing a mixture of white, pink, and brown.

Emerald fell backwards against a tree, leaning on it for support, her legs trembling with the exertion of keeping her upright. "Where's Cinder?" she yelled.

"Not here!" Mercury yelled back as he crouched behind the parasol to avoid getting hit by another round of shots. Ren and Ironwood advanced side-by side, keeping the pair pinned behind the cover of the umbrella with a hail of bullets. "She thought this would be a trap and sent me and Neo instead!"

His next sentence was cut off as the short woman, Neo, jumped up, springboarding off his back to jump away. Mercury was sent flying to the side, just as the ground underneath them exploded outward. He rolled to a stop and immediately regained his footing, coming up in a ready stance and ducking under another hail of bullets as Ren closed the distance. Ironwood blocked his way as he moved to regroup with Neo, forcing him to jump back.

On the other side of the clearing Glynda descended from her tree, aiming her heels into Neo's face. She cartwheeled to the side just in time, but Glynda's attack had effectively put a barrier between the two fights.

"You go in close, I'll cover your dodges!" Ironwood instructed. Ren nodded, rushing forward to meet Mercury while Ironwood shot at the silver-haired boy, allowing Ren to close without trouble.

Ren's blades met with Mercury's leg and stopped in midair. Mercury spun in the opposite direction and jumped, kicking out with his other leg at Ren's face. Dropping to the ground, Ren dodged, responding with a leg sweep, intending to knock Mercury to the ground. Instead he jumped over Ren's leg, landing neatly and continuing his rotation to hit Ren in the side of his face.

Ren let the impact to knock him back, allowing Ironwood to take his place, simultaneously charging in and emptying another magazine at Mercury, who jumped and allowed his shins to take the shots. Ironwood pressed his attack as soon as Mercury landed, flipping his pistol in his hand and striking with it, but Mercury spun and grabbed Ironwood's wrist, letting the momentum of the pistol-whip spin him further around to the general's back. Attacking with a flurry of light punches and kicks, Mercury managed to get in a few hits before Ironwood dove away into a roll, coming up on his knees in a firing position.

Ren added a round of shots as well, rushing in to take Ironwood's place. He blocked Mercury's opening kicks with little difficulty, this time prepared to deal with the silver-haired boy's surprising speed and flexibility. He responded in kind, striking with Stormflower's blades in a wide arc, continuing the circle and jumping into a double kick. Mercury deflected the strikes with his boots, ducking under the first kick and stopping the second inches from his face with his forearm. His momentum suddenly stolen, Ren could do nothing as Mercury stepped into his guard, knocking him off-balance with an uppercut that connected with his jaw.

Mercury kept the distance between them minimal as he followed Ren's backward stumble, punching him twice in the chest before crouching low and jumping in a corkscrew motion, putting all his force into a kick that smashed into Ren's ribs.

Even with the protection of his aura, Ren was launched backwards, the breath driven from his lungs. Choking on the ground, he could see that Ironwood had taken his place, trading blows with him. Where Mercury had speed and flexibility, the general had strength and discipline on his side. He took the less-powerful kicks and punches with his mighty form, outright blocking others with little difficulty. Mercury darted from side to side and, seeing his attacks were ineffective, fell back with the general's next hit, dropping to the ground on his back.

Kicking out with both feet Mercury launched two projectiles at the general, white blurs that spun through the air in a spiral motion. Ironwood barely had time to dodge them before six more slammed into him, forcing him to take a step back.

Ren found himself in a similar situation, forced to roll out of the way to avoid taking a group of Mercury's spiraling projectiles himself. As he got to his feet he saw Mercury pull himself into a low spin, both legs off the ground as he shifted his balance from one hand to the other during each rotation. He fired rounds continuously from his boots, each projectile joining the spinning white whirlwind around him until they numbered more than a hundred.

Ren and Ironwood had no time to react as Mercury abruptly stopped his spin, the whirlwind of projectiles flying at them en-masse. Ironwood dodged the first few hits before the others began colliding, he resorted to weathering them with his right side. Ren launched himself into a series of complicated spins and jumps to avoid a greater number of them, but dodging all of them was far beyond his ability; each hit he took sailed into him like a punch. Individually they were little threat, but getting hit by dozens wreaked havoc on his aura; he felt drained when the projectiles finally stopped coming. His aura was nearly gone.

Ironwood looked to be in much worse condition. The clothing on his right side had been ripped to tatters. Instead of skin, his right side was entirely metal, high-tech cybernetic prosthetics. Ren didn't have time to appreciate the logic behind Ironwood's decision to let the metal take the hits and conserve his aura, as Mercury collided with the general from the side at great speed, throwing him from his feet. Ironwood had barely landed in the dirt when Mercury came down over him, making to curbstomp his face. The general moved his head to avoid just in time, Mercury's boot firing a shot and cratering the ground next to the general's head.

Despite his vicious attack, he was unprepared when Ironwood grabbed his leg, pinning him. Ren raised Stormflower and shot at him before he could retaliate, giving Ironwood the split-second he needed to bring his other fist into smash against Mercury's leg.

Instead of stopping, Ironwood's fist went straight through, tearing the fabric of Mercury's pants as it went. Mercury leapt back as the lower half of his leg was destroyed, scattered onto the grass. When it rolled on the ground, Ren was surprised to see a marked absence of blood. Instead, pieces of metal and bits of wire littered the dirt.

Glancing up, he took stock of Mercury again. Now leaned against a tree, he panted as he appraised his leg. Broken off halfway up his shin was a jagged and twisted piece of metal, _or more accurately,_ Ren realized, _a prosthetic!_

"Go help Glynda!" Ironwood shouted, raising his pistol. "I'll take care of this one!" As Ren ran off in the direction of the remaining fight, Ironwood took aim at Mercury and pulled the second trigger, which Ren had failed to notice until now. The revolver cylinder popped out to the side, revealing six cartridges, and with the sound of multiple whips flying through the air, half a dozen metal wires launched from the cylinder.

As they wrapped around Mercury he fell helplessly to the ground, writhing as the wires tightened around his body delivering countless electrical shocks one after another. After a few moments he lay still, unconscious.

When he arrived, Glynda acknowledged Ren with a curt nod of her head, indicating Neo. "Be careful, she's hard to hit. Don't overextend."

"Understood," he acknowledged, rushing the girl with pistols drawn. Neo deflected his flurry of shots nonchalantly with her parasol, spinning it back to rest on her shoulder afterward. Ren slid low on the dirt, jumping up at the last second in a spinning kick, But the girl bowed forward, letting his strike sail over her head. His follow up proved just as ineffective, as she weaved around him like water, easily avoiding his swiftest kicks and slashes.

Neo took the offensive next, jabbing outward with the parasol. Instead of dodging Ren attempted to catch the parasol between Stormflower's blades, managing to halt the thrust just before the blade that extended from the tip pierced his eye. The parasol then sprung open, throwing Ren's arms wide, and he jumped backwards in case Neo attacked his open guard.

Likely sensing his move Neo cartwheeled after him, landing neatly directly in front of him and whipping the handle of her parasol into his ribs twice before jumping and delivering a double kick to his chest, sending him reeling. Kicking off and landing after a graceful flip, Neo reversed her grip on her parasol and caught one of Ren's arms with the curved handle, pulling him back toward her with surprising force for someone of her size. Using Ren's weight as a driving force Neo once again kicked out while forcefully pulling him towards her. Caught square in the chest, Ren was knocked back across the clearing.

Glynda covered him with a barrage of white arcing lights as he got to his feet, jumping to his side. Neo merely whipped her parasol open and blocked the missiles, watching them with a smirk. "Like I said," Glynda chastised, "don't let her get too close. If your aura is low, fall back and let me take point. Ironwood's reinforcements should be here any second, hang tight until then."

Ren nodded, nearly jumping in surprise when Ironwood appeared beside him, taking a ready stance. "He's not going anywhere," the general said, cutting off Glynda's worried look. "He's unconscious and cuffed."

"Good. Be careful with this one, she's faster than she looks."

"I saw," he growled, slotting a fresh magazine into his pistol and reloading the revolver cylinder. "I'll hang back and look for an opening, you two take point. She'd just dance around someone my size; my strength isn't good for this fight. I called reinforcements, so we just need to keep her occupied for a minute or so."

Ren waited for Goodwitch's signal before rushing Neo, firing a line of bullets at her before jumping to the side and continuing his run, hoping to get behind her. Neo spun and evaded his shots, but otherwise allowed him to circle around to her back.

After Ren's charge, Ironwood began firing at the girl, a steady echo of gunshots keeping her on her toes as she danced around the shots and blocked them with her parasol. Goodwitch split off and ran around Neo's opposite side, waving her riding crop in a circular motion when she stopped. A purple wave flashed out from her feet and hundreds of the surrounding pebbles began levitating, ascending until they gathered like a swarm of insects, spinning and whizzing around the professor.

Throwing her hand forward, a purple magic circle appeared in front of Glynda. With her riding crop, she directed a barrage of stones at Neo, one by one flying out of the swarm and through the magic circle with an echo, cutting through the air.

Neo had managed to dodge Ren and Ironwood's gunfire with little trouble, but the blistering firing rate of Goodwitch's stone projectiles forced her to shield herself with her parasol after an unsuccessful dodge left her taking multiple stones to the legs and torso.

Ren attacked with a flying kick from the side, which Neo deflected by grabbing his ankle and redirecting his force. However, deflecting Goodwitch's continues firing as she was, she was unable to spin and increase the force of her throw. Ren landed unharmed a few feet away, brandishing Stormflower.

Neo was forced to give ground as he attacked with Stormflower's blades, aiming for her torso to keep pushing her back. Glynda's stone barrage suddenly let up, and Neo stumbled backward with the sudden absence of force. Ren took advantage of the opening, dropping Stormflower and slamming a fist into her nose. Although she flipped away to recover, Ren felt her aura shatter under his strike, flashing white and purple. She glared wordlessly at him as she got to her feet, wiping blood away from her nose and mouth. Ren picked up Stormflower again, ejecting the empty magazines.

Combat halted as the sudden roar of an airship came from above, a shadow dropping over the clearing as it descended until it hovered just above the trees. Glynda and Ironwood kept their eyes on Neo, but Ren could make out the smiles on their faces as their reinforcements came.

"Wait," Ren said, watching the ship in confusion as nothing happened. The side doors stayed closed, and no Atlesian Knights dropped to their aid. "Why is there only one?"

"What?" Ironwood exclaimed, now looking up as well. "There were two!"

The door finally slid open and a regiment of Atlesian Knights fell from the ship, falling uselessly on the ground, breaking apart on impact. Neo's smile grew wider as a man appeared in the doorway, leaning out over them. His white jacket and orange hair blew in the wind, and he held his black bowler hat to his head to keep it from flying off. In his opposite hand he brandished a cane, although the curved handle was pointed downward.

"Hello general!" he called down, yelling above the roar of the engines. "I missed you so much, that I just had to come pay a visit!"

"Roman!" Ironwood yelled, training his pistol on the man, "How did you escape from my ship?"

Roman cackled, pulling a scroll from his jacket, "It's a little something called technology! Maybe you've heard of it? It's all the rage with kids these days!" He shook the scroll between two fingers, mocking them. "You know, you're not as smart as they say you are!"

The end of his cane fired downward, the handle launching toward Neo like a grappling hook. She grabbed it from midair and immediately began ascending, the airship taking off and pulling her up with it.

"Cut the rope!" Ren yelled, throwing Stormflower like a boomerang. It hit its mark but clattered harmlessly off, falling back to the ground. Ironwood pulled the smaller trigger on his pistol again, launching the taser wires up, but they fell off before they could reach Neo. She grinned in victory, the blood from her nose smattered all over her lips. As the airship disappeared from view behind the trees, Ironwood pulled out his scroll and began barking into it, ordering a strike force to go after the rogue ship.

Glynda sighed in relief and went to examine Mercury, and Ren was left in the center of the clearing. Without a second thought he rushed to Emerald, who still leaned against a tree with her eyes closed.

"The fight's over, Emerald. How are you feeling?"

"My head hurts like hell," she groaned, rubbing her temples. "Keeping up that illusion against the two of them was tough. Are you doing okay?"

"I'm good. Actually," he added with a smile, "I'm not sure if you noticed, but we managed to capture Mercury!"

Emerald's eyes widened and she suddenly looked more awake. "Are you serious?" Ren nodded. "Wow, I didn't think that'd happen, honestly. When he wants to get serious, he's more capable than he looks."

"Do you think it'll do any good?"

Emerald laughed, "Not at all. Any information he knows, I know. And I'd bet even less, since he doesn't pay attention. And he can't even be tried as an adult; he's seventeen."

"I guess Ironwood traded a useful prisoner for a useless one."

"I wouldn't expect anything more from the Atlas military." Ren chuckled at that, helping Emerald to her feet. Across the clearing, Ironwood had slung Mercury over his shoulder, while Glynda spoke into her scroll.

Winded after the fight, the four of them stayed in the clearing until one of Ironwood's ships came to pick them up. Glynda, Ren, and Emerald were dropped off on the Beacon docks, while Ironwood continued on with Mercury, heading to the Atlas military flagship.

Ozpin met them at the docks, a mysterious smile on his face. "Come, you three. I'd like to speak to you in my office."

"I've got a headache," Emerald stated, eyes narrowed against the sun.

"I've got hot chocolate, coffee, cookies, and high-grade painkillers," Ozpin responded, taking a swig from his mug. "We need to plan our next move. With Cinder's pieces gone, we have no time to waste. By herself, a Queen can do little besides attack relentlessly, and I intend to be fully prepared for what will inevitably come next."

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 **Torchwick ex machina!**

 **Much like a roman candle, Torchwick's appearance in this fic is bright, beautiful, but short - and he won't be reappearing. (But he also won't be dying, so that's nice.)**


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